


Marichat May 2020

by Lady3ellewrites



Series: Month challenges [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Cross-Posted on Tumblr, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Marichat May, Marichat May 2020, Marichat | Adrien Agreste as Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, One Shot Collection
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-21
Updated: 2020-10-27
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:34:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 24
Words: 28,347
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26025784
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lady3ellewrites/pseuds/Lady3ellewrites
Summary: A collection of short-ish one shots written for Marichat May 2020, based onthis prompt list! Most are unconnected, unless specified otherwise (specific summaries are included at the beginning of each chapter)Maybe one day I'll go back and write the first prompts...
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Series: Month challenges [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1889104
Comments: 59
Kudos: 68





	1. Day 6 - Hold my baton

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In which Chat Noir pays a visit to his good friend Marinette after noticing a mood change during class

Marinette had waited all day for science class. Not that she particularly favoured Mrs. Mendeleiev’s class, but because today was the beginning of an important project that would carry through to the end of the year. A project in pairs. 

She hadn’t really thought about it until that morning, assuming that as per usual, she’d be teamed up with Alya, but her best friend had had an agenda. Tired of Marinette’s constant procrastination when it came to confessing her feelings to Adrien, the young girl had decided to be the catalyst of the love reaction 95% of the class was dying to see happen.

“Nuh-uh Mari, not pairing up with you this time. Nino and I have been brainstorming how to sequence DNA from akumas to expose Hawkmoth for months, I’m not abandoning this project. It’s a win-win situation, you’ll have to work with Adrien since everybody’s keeping their usual pair, this is your chance girl! Just imagine, two months of working closely with Adrien, that’s more than enough time for things to happen if you know what I mean.” She’d waggled her eyebrows suggestively while Marinette weighed her options. It was a foolproof plan. Just a pair switch. Another opportunity to spend this much time with Adrien might not even present itself again. 

She’d agreed seemingly reluctantly -she didn’t want to give Alya the impression that she could do this all the time- but inside she’d been jumping around with joy. It was going to be perfect.

That was without counting on Lila spreading chaotic evilness as she always did, of course. Marinette had almost forgotten about her, she hadn’t been in class for so long. But the girl had made yet another appearance in her life, and with another one of her well-weaved lies she’d captured Adrien in her web, leaving Marinette to work with Chloe and Sabrina, of all people.

She dragged her feet home, internally screaming about how much of a disaster this whole situation had turned out to be.

Her sudden change of mood, from bubbly stammering adorableness to slumped damsel is depressed, had not gone unnoticed by a certain green-eyed boy, however. He had helplessly observed the light leave her eyes as words flew out of Lila’s mouth. He hadn’t even been able to express his own opinion on the pairing choice; had it been up to him, he’d definitely have picked his good friend Marinette to be his pair. She’d left so fast after class that he hadn’t even been able to talk to her.And even if he had, he wasn’t sure he would have been able to make her feel better. But he had a feline someone else could…

Marinette was lying on her bed when she heard a soft rasping sound coming from her terrasse trap door.

“Hey there purr-incess,” Chat Noir winked as she let him in. He was slightly taken aback by the strong hug he was suddenly engulfed in, but promptly hugged her back just as tight.

“You wouldn’t believe how happy I am to see you, kitty.” Marinette whispered. She could have cried, that’s how happy she was to see her favourite partner in crime-solving. “How do you always know when I need someone to talk to?” She gazed into his green cat eyes.

He was half tempted to reveal his real identity to her in that moment, but he doubted Ladybug would approve, even if Marinette was the most trust-worthy person he knew. “Oh, umm…” He stammered, releasing himself from her embrace. “Ladybug and I have been fitted with new powers that allow us to sense negative emotions so we’re ahead of Hawkmoth for akumatisations.” That sounded plausible.

“Is that so?” Marinette replied, a slight twinkle returning in her eye. 

“Yes, and I felt a very negative aura coming out of you, so I thought I’d check everything was alright.”

“That’s very kind Chat, but I’m afraid there isn’t much you can do. It’s just my usual bad luck.” She sighed.

Chat Noir narrowed his eyes. “Who hurt you purr-incess? Is it that boy you like? Who is he? Who does he think he is? Nobody hurts my Marinette and gets to live with it. I’ll fight him for you, you’ll see. Here, hold my baton.” He shoved his weapon in Marinette’s hands and got into a fighting stance, throwing a couple punches in the air. Then on Marinette’s mannequin, which collapsed on him, the hat it was carrying falling on his face. “Actually forget it, that’s a terrible idea. I’m a much better fighter with it.” He straightened the mess he’d made and snatched his rod back from Marinette’s grasp, twirling it like a circus baton. He sneaked a look at her facial expression; she looked amused so he continued clowning around. “Or maybe you could fight him, who knows, it could be cat-thartic.” He winked.

She burst out lauging. “Chat, you do know your puns get worse by the day, right?” 

“You sound like Ladybug.” He pouted, crossing his arms and turning away from her. He had a giddy feeling in his stomach from making her laugh though.

“I never said I didn’t like it.” She smiled, touching his arm lightly. She was slightly flushed. “Thanks kitty, but it’s not Ad-… I mean, the boy I like. I mean, I was supposed to work with him on a project but this girl… You know her, Lila, she ruined it…”

As she was ranting about the day’s events, Chat half-listened, half tried to figure out who the boy might be. Could it be she finally reciprocated Nathanael’s feelings? Was it someone else? Whoever it was, he didn’t deserve her. He crossed eyes with a particularly bad photo of himself -well, of Adrien-, making what he liked to call his “boy, ya dumb” face. It was front and center on a panel of other modelling “grotographs” of him, because he was wearing her hat.

“… Anyway, I’d rather you didn’t go after her, she’s too much of a wild card. No need to give her an excuse to be akumatised again. She could seriously harm you. And Ladybug. I’ll definitely hold your baton if you decide to fight her.”

“Fine, I’ll step down, if that’s what you wish.” He bowed.

There was a big explosion outside, which had them both running to the window to see what was going on. The Eiffel Tower had collapsed. Again.

“They really should have called it the Eistand Tower, maybe then people would be less inclined to making it explode,” Chat muttered, earning himself an amused glance from Marinette. 

“Seems like your new power doesn’t work very well if you couldn’t detect whatever caused that to happen,” she teased him, basically pushing him up the stairs towards her trap door. “You should really go, kitty, you don’t want to leave poor Ladybug fighting alone. Don’t worry about me, I’ll be safe in this sturdy building.” She grinned, knocking on her wall.

“I’m sure you will,” he chuckled, opening the latch. He turned back before taking off. “Hey Marinette?”

“Yes?” She asked absentmindedly, eyeing the damage on the horizon. 

“Whoever it is, I’m sure your man would have much preferred working with you than with Lila.” He knew he would have. Despite his benevolence, he himself was starting to think Lila was beyond help. 

“Thanks, Chat.” She smiled tenderly and kissed him on the cheek. “Now go save Paris!”

Chat leapt away before she could hear the purr that emerged from his chest, making a “so long” gesture as he departed. “I have a feline we’ll see each other soon, my purr-incess!” He yelled.

“Sooner than you think, chaton,” she whispered as she waved at him. She got back inside her room. Was it normal her heart fluttered so much when he came to visit? What had gotten over her, to kiss him? He was going to get the wrong idea again. But would that be so bad?… She decided to answer those questions later. She had a city to save, after all.

“Tikki, spots on!”


	2. Day 7 - Disguise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In which Marinette is coerced into attending a masked ball by Chat Noir, who isn't of much help when it comes to finding a disguise (until he offers her the perfect one)

“You know the Agreste superhero ball is tonight, right?” 

Chat Noir was lying on Marinette’s sofa, completely relaxed as his favourite civilian paced around the room, flicking through the pages of her notebook.

“Thanks, Sherlock.” She shot him a dark glare.

That cat would be the death of her. How weak had she been, accepting his invitation as his date? She’d worked all week to plant the foundations of a lie that would have justified her absence with her friends. On Monday, she had started to cough. On Tuesday, she’d pretended to sniffle all day. Wednesday she’d maintained her act, complete with a non-faked tiredness from working on her Ladybug dress overnight. The _coup de grâce_ came on Friday: she had used Tikki’s powers to fake a small fever. The Kwami had disapproved at first, but had changed her mind when she had seen how stressed her carrier was at the prospect of juggling between Marinette and her Miraculous persona all night. Was it wrong to want to be just Ladybug for an evening?

That night, though, Chat had paid her a little visit, having heard through the “cat-vine” that she hadn’t been “feeline” well. Except that instead of finding her feverish and buried under a pile of covers, she’d been running around fixing up a characteristically red and black, Ancient Egyptian-style dress. 

“Oh my God, I can’t believe Ladybug is exploiting you for a disguise she doesn’t even need!!” He’d started dialling her on his baton, but Marinette had interrupted him.

“She’s not exploiting me, I’m very happy to be working on this dress,” she huffed. “And I promised my parents I’d spend the evening with them.”

“Oh but please, come tomorrow! Be my date? I purr-omise it will be fun!” He used the kitty eyes move she had trouble resisting with Manon, except his were much more enticing. She felt oddly drawn to him, like a moth to a flame. In that if she got too close, it wouldn’t end well.

“I’m not a super hero though, I’d need a disguise. And I don’t have time to make myself one.”

“Just take Ladybug’s. She won’t mind.” He shrugged.

“Yes, she will. She announced on TV that she would be wearing one of my creations. If she doesn’t, she won’t be in Gabriel Agreste’s good graces anymore.” She sat down on the floor and adjusted the dress’ hem. “She declined his offer to be dressed by him, you know.”

The mysterious designer had reached out during one of her patrols, offering her a tailored creation that would leave the “tout Paris” gaping. As much as she’d been dying to see him work, something had felt off. She didn’t know if it was that day’s biais of Mr Agreste, who’d once again refused to let Adrien join their crew for yet another activity, but as much as she admired the artist’s work, all she had seen was a man who prevented his son from leading a normal life. Besides, as she knew all too well, tailoring meant measurements, which could let out too much information regarding her real identity. She couldn’t afford the risk of Hawkmoth getting his hands on her physical specifications. 

“Why do you want me to go so badly anyway?” She asked the cat-boy. He was busy playing with a ball of yarn that was lying on the floor. 

“I don’t want to spend the night alone.” He lost interest in his toy, and his eyes glazed over as he looked into nothingness. A sort of fatigue seemed to have washed over him.

Marinette’s heart softened. He looked so sad she wanted to hug him. “You know you’re never alone, Chat. You’ve got Ladybug.”

“You’re nicer though, purr-incess” He looked at her, a small smile forming on his lips. “I like spending time with you, it’s… refreshing, being able to breathe for a bit, and have a proper chat with an actual human being. Ladybug’s always running around, I wish she’d slow down sometimes, you know?”

She thought about all the times she’d left Chat Noir hanging after akumatisations or even on patrols. So the reason why he was constantly trying to get her to go see a movie with him, or eat an ice cream, or just hang out, was actually to get her to relax? And to not be alone? She closed her eyes, thinking about how dense she’d been to his feelings. Of course Chat felt alone. She also did. It came with the job. 

It hadn’t been her intention to hurt him though. Most of the time there was a valid excuse as to why she had to bug-ger off (he rolled her eyes at the realisation that she was being contaminated by Chat’s puns). Like imminent detransformation. 

“Fine, then. I’ll go.” She had sighed, cursing her good heart and his persuasion skills. 

“Really?” His eyes had lit up, and he’d started dancing around the room, sing-songing his thanks. He’d dragged her along, hugging her tightly. “Don’t worry, I’ll bring your disguise. You can count on me!”

And she’d believed him. Because if Ladybug could always count on him, then so could Marinette.

But she wasn’t Ladybug.

“Oh come on, cheer up! It’s not like it’s a complete cat-astrophe. I still don’t understand why you won’t wear my disguise. Banana-noir has saved Paris at least a couple of times.” He smirked, eyeing the bright yellow suit that was hanging on Marinette’s mezzanine. “I even got it signed specially for you!”

Marinette glanced at the “stay peachy!” scribbled on the costume and sighed. 

“It’s one of the most important fashion events of the year. I’m representing my brand. I can’t go as a fruit!”

“Not a fruit: bananas are actually berries, you know.” Chat grinned.

“Whatever.” She rolled her eyes.

“How about Marino? He was a stylish character.” Chat asked absentmindedly.

She felt heat rise to her cheeks. She hadn’t interacted with Chat Noir that day in her civilian attire. Had he been there? At Adrien’s party? “What… How do _you_ know about Marino?”

Chat’s cheeks burned up, and had the girl looked up she would had noticed the sheer panic in his eyes. “Um… At the end of the fight, I went inside the Agreste’s mansion to check if everything was okay. I… I saw you hiding behind a seat.” He breathed, trying to calm his tachycardic heart. “Strong disguise, but I’d recognise those pretty eyes of yours anywhere.” 

She almost snorted. 

“Thanks, but I’m afraid Marino won’t be making an appearance today.” 

“Everybody’s loss I guess.” He laughed awkwardly. That had been a close one. “Oh I know! Why don’t I go and get you the mouse Miraculous? You can pretend you copied the design. Or just own the fact that you ARE Multimouse. Bugaboo already made it clear she wouldn’t give it to you again because I know who you are, but I mean technically Paris doesn’t know.”

She thought about it. She doubted Master Fu would be willing to give out a Miraculous as a disguise even if it was for her, but she guessed there’d be no harm in trying. And she could actually whip up something like Multimouse’s costume in the short amount of time that separated her from the ball. She’d have to be careful about it, but there was a good chance she could make the double identity work. She could just make an appearance as Ladybug at the beginning of the night, “leave” and come back as Marinette. 

“That’s actually a good idea.”

“Ah see, I’m not just a purr-etty face!” Chat smiled. He leapt up and made his way to the trapdoor.

“I’ll be late though, I wasn’t lying yesterday when I said I promised my parents a family night.”

“I’ll be waiting!” He kissed her hand, as he usually did Ladybug’s. “Can’t wait to see your designs. You know I’m your number one fan.” He winked.

She couldn’t help but smile. “Thanks kitty.”

Later, as she was finishing her Multimouse outfit, she heard a knock. The trapdoor opened and she saw a black hand throw a small box on her bed. Before she could react she saw Chat Noir jump to a nearby roof, and disappear into the sunset.

She climbed to her bed and picked up the box. A note was stuck on it, reading:

_I don’t want to bother you during Ladybug’s fitting/family night, but here is the promised disguise. Thank you for being the Souris to my Chat. Can’t wait to see you later, it’s going to be paw-some! xxx Your number 1 fan_

She pocketed the box, and put the note away in a drawer, with Adrien’s poem. She had to take care of her Chaton, he was too purr-ecious to lose. But she’d need to find a way to stop using his puns all the time though. Because that simply wouldn’t do.


	3. Day 8 - Don't tell me what to do

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In which Marinette and Chat Noir play video games, and Chat Noir is a sore loser.

“Ugh, why is this so hard??” Chat Noir huffed. “Why. Won’t. You. Fall???”

Marinette chuckled, sending another sun pose attack his way. Mewtwo wobbled on the edge of the cliff, but Chat’s frenetic joystick jamming somewhat restored his balance. “So much for your ‘cat-like’ reflexes.” She smirked.

It had become a tradition for Chat Noir to come over and play video games with her on Friday nights. She had to admit, he was a decent contender for most games. Super Smash Bros wasn’t one of them.

“Stop distracting me!” He narrowed his eyes and pressed a random combination of buttons, which somehow fired Mewtwo’s special attack. “Aha- got you this time!” He grinned as a blue ball of electricity crossed the screen towards Marinette’s favourite character. She made the WiiFit trainer get into a plank position at the last minute, effectively dodging the attack.

“What? Oh come on, surely physics don’t work like that? You should’ve been electrocuted out of the game! I’m sure you’re cheating.” He looked at her suspiciously.

“Don’t need to when you’re playing against someone who skipped the tutorial. You know, if you’d just loosen your grip on the controller…”

“Don’t tell me what to do!” He jammed the buttons harder.

Marinette let out an amused sigh. Boy, was it going to be a long evening if he continued like this.

“Chat, we can play something else if you’d like… What about my friend Max’s game? You’d enjoy yourself more…”

“No I wouldn’t; watch me enjoy yeeting you into space.” He launched another attack, which she parried. Mewtwo received it at full power, and finally fell off the screen.

“Sorry kitty,” Marinette tapped his shoulder compassionately. “Better luck next time!”

He frowned and crossed his arms across his chest, pouting. She smiled at the sight. She loved seeing this side of Chat Noir: the intense kid who (sort of) sucked at video games. She got up and messed up his hair a bit. “I’m going downstairs to get a snack, can I get you anything?” 

He mumbled something about why needing a snack when he was in the room, but that whatever was fine. She shook her head, barely repressing a laugh. Her Chaton clearly wasn’t as upset as he let on.

Marinette made her way downstairs and piled a bunch of macarons on a plate. She grabbed a glass of milk for her silly cat. 

She was met by a smug grin as she re-entered her room. 

“What have you done?” She asked suspiciously, putting the feast down next to her sewing machine. 

“What makes you think I did anything, purr-incess?” He smiled angelically. “You know I’m purr-fect.”

She turned around, and noticed he’d not only hidden the controllers, but had also disconnected the console from her computer screen and unplugged all the possible cables, which he’d tangled up on the floor. “Wow, kitty, real mature of you.” She slow clapped.

“I meow, right?” He actually looked really proud of himself.

She rolled her eyes at the situation and the worsening puns. “Just… just eat.”

“You’re the best, you know that?” He kissed her cheek, grabbing a passion fruit macaron.

“And you’re an unbelievably sore loser.”

“Purr-haps,” he took a gulp of milk, which gave him a white moustache, “but you love it!”

Marinette sighed. She’d have trouble denying that.


	4. Day 9 - Cone of shame

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chat gets hit by a supervillain power and finds himself wearing a slowly tightening cone of shame. Who better than Marinette to save him?

The situation was bad. Very bad. One might even say it was a cat-astrophe. But that particular person had yet to make an appearance.

Ladybug cursed under her breath as she dodged another attack from her opponent. Today’s villain’s powers? Punishing people using popular sayings (whatever had brought that on was beyond her). Ladybug had called on Carapace and Reyna Rouge for back up, but she now had an upside down turtle and a Fox on the Run. And still not a cat in sight. She dived behind a chimney as her opponent got distracted by a police car, and called Chat Noir.

“Cat got –” She hung up before the whole prerecorded message had played, swiftly rolling out of her hiding place as it collapsed under the weight of the car. What saying could have caused that? 

Using her yoyo as a shield, she came out into the open. The villain had her back to her. If she used her Lucky Charm now, she’d lose her protection and would risk being hit by the “Ladybug, Ladybug, fly away home” she’d been trying to avoid for an hour. Whether that would make her actually fly home or just fly away was unclear, but she could not take the risk of her address -and therefore, identity- being revealed. Using her power would also mean having to figure something out in a short amount of time, before she detransformed. Was there another option though? 

She scanned the rooftops again, hoping to catch a glimpse of a familiar black feline. Nothing. 

This was it, then. 

She stopped shielding herself and threw her yoyo in the air as the villain turned around and cast his spell. 

“Lucky-” She started, but she saw the flash of light approach her like in a timelapse. She closed her eyes and said a little prayer for Paris, waiting for it to hit her.

And it did. Just not from the direction she’d expected. She opened her eyes to characteristic green eyes bearing into hers.

“Missed me, my Lady?” Chat Noir asked as he gave her a hand to get back up. 

A wave of relief washed over her. Promptly followed by one of anger. “Where the hell were you? I thought- I thought it was finished. That Hawkmoth had me!”

“You know I’ll always have your back. Sorry I was late, though. Purrisian traffic, you know?” He winked.

Chat Noir was facing Ladybug, twirling his baton behind his back. They were both too focused on each other to notice the villain’s movements, until he was looming over them.

“Bad kitty, you interrupted me in the middle of my plan! You can think about what you’ve done wearing the Cone of Shame!” He bellowed, casting another spell. Chat didn’t have time to dodge; he got hit at full power. A massive cone embraced his neck.

“Honestly is this the best you can d-ack,” Chat choked as the grip of the cone tightened.

“Cata-ack,” he tried, but the cone interrupted him. Ladybug saw him look around, a panicked look in his eyes. He lifted his gaze and stopped. She saw the familiar balcony that had caught his attention and knew exactly what was going to happen.

“Damn it!” She cursed under her breath. Of course they were now in close proximity of the Dupain-Cheng bakery. Chat took cover and gestured towards Marinette’s building. He mimed scissors and took off. 

Ladybug raced to the rear entrance of her Home, promptly detransformed and ran up to her room. She arrived just in time for Chat’s arrival. He let himself in in a frenzy. His cone was clearly tightening by the minute, rendering him oblivious to her short breath.

“Hey kitty, what’s the matter?” Marinette asked, trying her best to regain control of her breathing. 

“Need. Scissors.” He replied in a hoarse voice. 

“Right.” She was glad to skip the unnecessary chit-chat. 

Grabbing her everyday scissors she sat him down on the floor and started working on the cone. She tried finding an edge, a place where the plastic -or whatever material this thing was made of- was thinner, but found none. She tried cutting, stabbing, shredding (taking good care not to accidentally harm her visitor), but the slightest dent seemed to resolve as soon as it had been made. 

“Chat, it’s not working.” She tried not to sound panicked, but the feeling was definitely starting to get a hold of her. She looked at Chat, whose face was starting to become blue from the lack of oxygen. He grabbed her hand tightly. “We need your cataclysm or-” She choked on her words, and the hand he wasn’t holding automatically went to her mouth, physically preventing her from saying what she dreaded most. She couldn’t lose him. Not now. Not ever.

“Breathe.” Chat whispered. Marinette glanced outside, and saw the damage the villain was making. “Don’t worry about him, Ladybug’s holding down the fort.”

She admired Chat for being so calm and trying to reassure her in this situation. She squeezed his hand in return. She had to think. There was bound to be a solution. She looked around, trying to find an idea. Folded socks she had yet to put away grabbed her attention. 

“Kitty, do you think we could slip some fabric between your neck and the cone?” 

He slid a finger in the gap to gauge the space and made a thumbs up gesture. 

“Good. This isn’t going to be comfortable, but it’s our best bet.” Chat nodded in understanding. I trust you, he mouthed.

Marinette started jamming her socks down the cone. Somehow, the contact with the fabric slightly enlarged its perimeter at the base, allowing Chat to take a big gulp of air. She saw he was about to say something and thrust her index on his lips. “Not now kitty, I’m not finished.” She continued fitting socks around his neck until she was satisfied that the whole surface was covered and sufficiently padded to allow him to use his power. 

“Now you can go.” Her voice was shaking. If this didn’t work, she’d sacrifice her secret identity to get a Lucky Charm. Anything to prevent the death of her partner.

“Cataclysm!” Chat said, instantly slamming his right hand on the cone. The torture instrument darkened and fell to dust. The boy gasped as he breathed in, his hands going to where the grip had been. Marinette dropped to her knees and hugged him tighter than she’d ever hugged anyone. He hugged her back. 

“Thank you, thank you, thank you.” He whispered in her ear, his breathing still laborious. “I knew I could count on you, Princess.” 

She let go a bit, taking a look at his neck. A deep, red, circular mark ran around it. On a whim, she kissed it. She felt Chat purr as his hand reached for her chin, tilting her face up to face his. She saw his gaze go to her lips, the hesitation. Their eyes met, his hypnotic green eyes bearing into hers. He blinked once. Twice. 

And shook his head, helping her up as he stood. He kissed her on the forehead, for a little longer than would be acceptable for a friend.

His ring bleeped, bringing them both back to reality. “I, uh… I need to go.” He said, almost reluctantly. 

“Mmhm.” She acquiesced.

“Thanks again for saving me. Talk to you later?” He asked as he climbed to the roof.

“Yep. That works.” She nodded. He left, leaving her alone with her thoughts.

“Er, Marinette? I know you might have some other stuff on your mind but we still have an akuma to catch!” Tikki said, coming out of her bag.

Marinette snapped back into focus. “Sorry Tikki, don’t worry I’m back!”

As she leapt back into the fight, she made a mental note to look up the effects of Adrenaline/Epinephrine. They could probably explain her sudden attraction for her Chaton, right?


	5. Day 10 - Can I borrow your Miraculous?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This follows day 7! Marinette and Chat Noir play truth or dare in the dark.

“Can I come in for a bit?” Chat pleaded after the both of them had landed on Marinette’s balcony. “I don’t really feel like going home right now.”

The Agreste superhero ball had been a success. There had been no akumatisations, and no identity slip-ups apart from the planned “Marinette is Multimouse?” reveal, which protected her from being called upon by Chat Noir in the middle of a battle for reinforcements. _That_ would be awkward.

Marinette was tired, but she still felt the buzz from the party. She’d really enjoyed herself with her partner - why was she so surprised? They had talked, they had danced (Chat was an excellent dancer - almost as good as Adrien), they had laughed, and they had eaten to their hearts’ content. She had rarely, if ever, seen the boy so happy. He seemed comfortable in a crowd, as if he’d spent his life progressing in these circles, but he’d also stood out as a bit spaced out, alone despite the presence of plenty, both time she’d found him (as Ladybug, then Multimouse). Like he would’ve liked to be anywhere but there. Both times, though, her sight had brought a genuine smile to his face, and she’d promised herself she’d keep him looking that way. No one deserved to be happy more than he did.

“Okay, but we’ll need to be quiet. My parents don’t technically know I was out.” Marinette smiled sheepishly as she opened the trap door. 

They climbed down on her bed and sat on it, face to face. The darkness and the silence contrasted direly with the evening’s constant babbling conversation. She was a lot more aware of Chat’s green eyes, which shined a lot brighter than she’d ever noticed. 

“Truth or dare?” He whispered, interrupting her thoughts.

“Huh?” 

“Truth, or dare?” He repeated, a little louder. “Sorry, I’ve never played before. I thought this would be a good time to try.” He looked down.

“How have you-” Marinette started, but an earlier conversation came back to her mind. He’d mentioned the fact he’d rarely had a night out with friends. She shook her head. “Never mind. Truth.”

“Umm…” He thought. “What’s your worst nightmare?” 

She considered lying, coming up with something less embarrassing than ‘my crush marrying someone else and adopting a hamster called Marinette’, but remembered he would probably be able to tell. Him having good night vision and all that. Also, why would she lie? It’s not like she wanted to impress him. This was _Chat Noir_ she was talking about. She told him, leaving the hamster part out, though.

“Great minds nightmare alike.” He smiled. “Although if your crush doesn’t marry you, it would be his loss.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.” She blushed slightly. “Your turn, truth or dare?”

“Truth.”

“What’s the cutest thing you’ve ever seen?” She blurted. She’d always been bad at this game. She could never think of good questions on the spot.

“Easy - you as Multimouse. So cute, I could eat you.” He inched closer to her as he answered, his smile revealing his pointy fangs. Her heart rate picked up as his face approached hers. It was like that time on the rooftop, when she - well, Ladybug- had told him she liked somebody else. That boy just liked being in her personal space. 

And, truth be told, she liked being in his.

She felt her face get closer to his, like drawn to a magnet, her eyes landing on his lips. Her heartbeat felt so loud she was worried he might hear it. He hesitated. Then kissed her nose gently and backed away. “Of course, that’s because I’ve never seen _myself_ as Multimouse. I’m pawsitive my cuteness would be off the charts!” He added, with a twinkle in his eyes. 

Aaaand typical Chat was back, ruining the moment. Or saving Marinette from her questionable instincts. 

“Can I borrow your Miraculous?” He asked, eyeing her necklace. 

“Absolutely not.” She huffed, crossing her hands across her chest.

“Why not?” He whined.

“Because Miraculouses are supposed to be used for good. And your use of it would just encourage your ego, which is far from being in the world’s best interest!” She flicked him lightly on the nose.

“You listen to Ladybug too much.” He pouted, rubbing his nose.

_If you knew how close I was to kissing you two minutes ago, when Adrien is literally staring at me from behind you, trust me, you’d know I’m not listening to her._


	6. Day 11 - Chat Blanc

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Post Adrien discovering Ladybug is Marinette, Chat Noir decides to deliver flowers to her, but gets caught and has to improvise.  
> (Or how to avoid writing Chat Blanc angst because there are too many feels)

Marinette was over the Moon. She’d probably pinched herself a thousand times during the course of the day to check it wasn’t all a dream. Adrien had liked her beret. And Adrien had said he loved her. They’d held hands. They’d kissed.

She squealed in excitement, hugging her pillow tightly against her chest. She rolled over on her side so as to face her panel of Adrien pictures. Of her _boyfriend_ ’s pictures, she corrected herself as she gently stroked one of them, her fingers trailing on his lips. She touched hers, reminiscing the feeling of his soft lips against them. Of his hands in her hair as he kissed her. The warmth she’d felt, not entirely due to the Sun shining over the Trocadéro. Had any first kiss ever been so perfect?

“Can you believe it, Tikki?” She sighed adoringly. “I’m his _girlfriend_.” She giggled giddily at the thought. Ladybug really was a bringer of luck.

“It was about time, if you ask me!” Her Kwami replied, patting her on the head. ”I’m really proud of you for expressing your feelings, Marinette. Even if I don’t really approve of the method. _You could have been caught._ ” 

“Who by? The Agreste Mansion is basically empty. Mr Agreste hides away somewhere when he’s in, Nathalie was at the front desk, Adrien was at his fencing competition, and the Gorilla was driving him. Don’t worry, I knew what I was doing.” 

Unfortunately for Marinette, Tikki could not be bribed with Macarons the way Plagg could with Camembert. She did her best to be supportive, but part of her could not help but worry about potential repercussions. 

A “thump” above them interrupted their conversation, indicating that someone had landed on the roof. A smile spread on Marinette’s face again as she got up. It could only be one person, and she had to share the good news with him. She opened her trap-door, finding her favourite alley cat in the middle of tying a big bouquet of red roses to her railing. He froze upon hearing the latch open, and slowly turned around.

“Purr-incess! What a surprise! What are you doing here?” He laughed awkwardly. He quickly snatched the note that had been stapled to the wrapping paper and stuffed it in his belt.

“We’ve been over this before, kitty,. I live here?” She smiled, amused and slightly perplexed by his mild discomfort. Where was her overly confident and chat-ty partner?

She met his eyes; his pupils dilated, seemingly filling with the emotions she was used to seeing in Chat’s eyes when he looked at Ladybug, or talked about her. Admiration. Love. His shoulders relaxed and a big grin spread across his face as he strode towards her. He picked her up effortlessly in a tight hug, and spun her around in his arms. 

He put her down, keeping her in his embrace. He stroked her cheek adoringly. And moved forward to kiss her. 

Marinette’s eyes widened as her heartbeat picked up. She felt good in his arms, and there had been moments when she’d been extremely tempted to kiss him in the past weeks. They had grown a lot closer from spending so much time together. With him, she’d started slowly letting go of Adrien, realising there were other boys around her that might be worth giving a second look at. Specifically, a leather-clad one who visited her almost every night. She glanced at the red roses, which reminded her of another balcony scene. She obviously hadn’t been the only one feeling the way she had. Except that, unlike her, Chat Noir wasn’t one for procrastinating when feelings were involved. 

She closed her eyes. He’d done it again. He’d fallen in love with her, the idiot. Her heart squeezed at the thought of doing this again.

“Chat…” She trailed, pushing him back in the softest way possible. “What are _you_ doing here?”

Chat was slightly taken aback at her rejection, but a realisation dawned in his eyes and he stepped away from her. He stood there for a minute, and she saw the cogs turning in his head. Finally, he got down on one knee.

“Princess, I love you! The Sun, the birds, the blooming flowers today made me realise that. You are the light in my life, nothing compares to your smile! Your laugh is the sweetest sound in the world, they could use it to end wars. You’re the most beautiful person I know, inside and out, and I couldn’t bear to let another moment pass without telling you.” He declaimed theatrically. “My heart is yours, please don’t break it.” 

“Oh Chaton.” She cradled his face. “I’m afraid you’re too late.”

His hands flew to his heart as if he’d just been stabbed, a pained expression on his face. “No. It can’t be possible. Who is he?”

Had Marinette been less worried about how to let him down slowly, she would have noticed there was something almost _too_ dramatic about his performance.

“Adrien Agreste.” She sighed dreamily. And remembered this wasn’t the moment to gush about him. “I mean, one of my classmates. I’m so sorry, Chat. He asked me out earlier today.” 

“That ugly model?” He spat. “I’m sure he doesn’t have a personality.”

“Hey, he’s not ugly!!” Marinette retorted. “In fact I guess he and you sort of share some facial features.” She crossed her arms. “And I’ll have you know he’s one of the smartest, funniest, kindest and most sophisticated people I know. He has a _great_ personality.”

There was a flicker of pride in his eyes as she described him. He fought to repress a smile. 

“I’m heartbroken.” He sighed, dramatically turning around, a hand flying to his forehead. “First Ladybug, now you… Will nobody ever love me?”

 _I mean, that’s only one person_ , Marinette thought. But she really couldn’t say that out loud. “Believe it or not Chat, I love you.” She said, touching his arm. “Not like you do, but you are my best friend.”

“And you, mine.” Chat faced her once again and kissed her longingly on the forehead. 

“And me having a boyfriend doesn’t change that.” She smiled gently, backing away. “You’re not allowed to fight him, but I won’t hesitate to do it myself if he has something to say about our friendship.”

“I wouldn’t recognise my Marinette if you didn’t.” He smiled. “I’ll go now. You can keep the roses.”

“Thanks, kitty.” She hugged him. “See you soon, you know you’re always welcome here.”

“You’re too kind m’l- Princess. What have I ever done to deserve you?” He kissed her hand.

“What can I say, I have a soft spot for stray cats.” 

His laugh echoed as he pounced off the roof. Marinette guessed the conversation had gone quite well. She untied the flowers from her balcony, and fetched a vase for them, oblivious to a certain blond boy conveniently walking in the street below mere minutes after her partner had left. 

Adrien was slightly disappointed that his special delivery had been interrupted. He’d almost forgotten himself, but somehow the whole situation had been perfect. He regretted not having a gift for her, but he doubted Marinette’s delight as she opened the door to find him could have been enhanced. What, indeed, had he ever done to deserve her?


	7. Day 12 - Kwami swap

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chat Noir and Marinette share their thoughts on the Kwami swap during a heatwave.

“I think I’m ready to let go of Ladybug,” Chat Noir said, an empty expression in his eyes as he gazed up at the ceiling.

The heatwave had hit Paris out of nowhere. The streets were empty. The schools, closed. Parisians had fled en masse to the countryside, where nature made the heat somewhat more bearable. Adrien had tried to get his father to agree to him inviting some of his friends over, their house being fully equipped with the latest technologies in terms of air conditioning and sun shading, but his father had been adamant. No one was to enter the property, nor leave the premises. 

After a couple of days of twiddling his thumbs and tweaking his room’s thermostat to ensure Plagg’s Camembert wouldn’t stench up the place, Adrien decided he wanted more from his Summer than sitting around in the dark, alone with his thoughts and Plagg talking about proper cheese conservation. He’d decided to take action and seek social interactions, beginning with the person he missed the most these days. Even if it meant wearing black leather to do so.

It had taken him more than twice the usual time to make it to Marinette’s place, what with the breaks in the shade every five seconds. He’d found her lying on the floor in the middle of her room, two large fans pointing at her. She’d weakly patted a space next to her as an answer to his request to join her.

“Is that so?” Marinette replied, barely tilting her head towards him. A part of her was glad he was finally moving on. The other, non negligible, wanted Chat all to herself. 

“I’ve just been thinking about that time we swapped Kwamis a lot, you know. She was just so cool. And if I have even half of Ladynoire’s charisma on a good day, and I look half as good as her doing my job and she isn’t attracted to me - I guess it’s probably not meant to be.”

“Do you really think she looked that good?” Marinette felt herself blush.

“Retrospe-kitty-vely, yes.” He paused. “But I guess I did find her a bit annoying when she was prancing around making jokes during the fight.”

“So you were Ladybugged. Don’t you think there might be a chance she might have gotten Chat Noired as well?”

“What does that even mean?” he frowned.

“Ladybug got into your head when you were wearing her Miraculous. Isn’t it paw-ssible,” she enunciated, “that she might have been attracted to you, with your professionalism and your seriousness, like you are when she is Ladybug?” She didn’t mention the suit. Although that was a compelling argument in itself.

“Purr-haps…” he let the thought roll around in his head for a bit. “Maybe I could suggest trying to switch again and see what gives.”

“And maybe you could come say hi afterwards.” Marinette said dreamily, her hand gently stretching towards Chat’s as she pictured Mr Bug in all his muscled glory. 

“Well, well, well,” Chat rolled to his side, a smirk on his lips. “I see someone’s a Mr Bug fan.” 

“What?!” Marinette jerked to attention. _Had she said that out loud?_

“Could it be you’re also a _kitty_ fan?” He asked flirtatiously, getting closer to her. “Do you like me, Miss Dupain-Cheng?”

“No. No! No way!” She pushed him away and got up. “And even if I did, how could I live knowing I’m up against Ladybug? I don’t even hold a candle to her.” 

“Relax purr-incess, I was just teasing,” Chat Noir got up as well. “The heat makes all of us say weird things. As if _I_ could give up Ladybug.” He laughed, and she joined him, although awkwardly at first.

“I’ll admit I sort of wish I still had her Kwami right now, though. Tikki is probably a lot easier to handle during a heatwave than Plagg. She doesn’t eat smelly cheese.” Chat shook his head, hoping Kwamis couldn’t hear when they were transformed. Behind him, Tikki blew him a kiss and nodded gravely from the ajar hat box she was hiding in. “Anyway, I’d better get going, not sure how the heat affects the transformation duration.” 

Marinette had to restrain herself from saying it didn’t. You never knew with the fabric, so she’d tested to see if it could keep the heat out. It did to some extent, but one was better off in good old shorts and a t-shirt. 

“Thanks for swinging by. Be careful not to stay in the sun for too long with your mask, or your identity will show!” Marinette playfully tapped his mask.

“Thanks for pointing it out, Ladybug would have my head if that’s how the grand reveal took place.” He winked. “By the way,” he added, almost as an afterthought before leaving, “for the record, you’re a lot more like Ladybug than you give yourself credit for. Whoever ends up winning your heart will be very lucky.”

Marinette hadn’t had time to reply. And if she’d had, she probably wouldn’t have known what to say. Damn heatwave.


	8. Day 13 - Flower Crowns

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette needs help making flower crowns for Manon's dance recital. Chat Noir comes to the rescue.

It was a beautiful Bank holiday weekend in Paris. The Sun had been shining non-stop for a couple of weeks, raising the temperature above what Parisians where used to in mid-May, thus drawing the population out into the open. Many sat down next to the Seine to picnic with friends or read in the shade, or just walked around, generally enjoying the nice weather. 

Marinette observed the riverbank crowd from her balcony. It was at times like these she was particularly thankful for her little corner of Paradise; she felt included in the buoyant city life, without being caught in the sea of people below.

Her eyes came back to her task. She had accepted, despite her incoming exams, to create the costumes for Manon’s dance recital; she had been too tempted to refuse when she had seen one of the rehearsals. She had _seen_ the perfect outfits as the children danced to the Nutcracker’s Flower Waltz. The fluid, dryad-y dresses for the little girls, elvish costumes for the little boys, all in spring colours. And flower crowns for all.

“Why did I _have_ to talk about the flower crowns?” Marinette sighed as she shifted the arrangement of a small bouquet of roses and daisies to find a good balance. 

The first few crowns had been fun to make. She’d done her research and established which look she liked best, before making some prototypes with a variety of flowers. Tikki had been an excellent model at that stage. Marinette had then scaled up, and had enjoyed spending time arranging the flowers in a bucolic way. She had made good progress on the project, before being distracted by outings with her friends and schoolwork. Now the recital was just around the corner, she still needed about ten crowns, and as she improved her technique, she felt like the fist ones lacked quality.

Her silent wish for her perfectionist thoughts to leave her alone for a couple of days was seemingly immediately granted, the answer taking the form of her friendly neighbourhood cat.

“‘Afternoon, Purr-incess.” Chat Noir hopped onto the balcony and sat crossed-legged in front of her. “Don’t you look like a nymph just out of a painting, today.”

“Thanks Chat.” She smiled, attaching a bunch of filler leaves to her crown.

“What’s with the florist display? Have you fur-saken your dream?” He gasped, a hand dramatically flying to his chest. “Who will make me my next costume? I was counting on you!”

“I thought those were magic?” She arched an eyebrow. Did he know something she didn’t? Was it possible to change their suit’s design?

“Yes, but there’s something about how we can influence them somehow. I’m sure the design you’d make for me would be spectacular enough to get it to change.” He shrugged. 

“That would be neat.” She struggled to maintain a rose on the headband and tie the loose ends of the string she was using to fix the vegetation. 

Chat swiftly grabbed a pair of scissors and came to sit next to her. He wrapped the string around the flower, made a knot and cut it while Marinette held the structure in place. Before she could say anything about being impressed that he’d known exactly what to do, Chat started playing with the string, like… well, like a cat with a ball of yarn. 

“Your behaviour really is influenced by your animal-sake, huh?” She shook her head.

Her comment seemed to jerk him out of a sort of trance. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He said, letting go of the string like it was a burning object. “Anyway, you didn’t answer my question. What’s all this?”

“I’m making flower crowns for Manon’s dance class.” 

“Cool! Can I help?” 

“Do you know how to make them?” Marinette asked.

“No, but I’m a fast learner!” He replied enthusiastically. 

Marinette sighed, looking down at the partly completed headband in her hands. On the one hand, she would probably waste some time explaining the concepts to Chat, and his first creations would probably not be good enough quality to give for the recital. On the other hand, she’d be quite happy to have him hang out with her. She glimpsed at her partner, who was already tying flowers together with string. He was sticking out his tongue in concentration, frowning slightly. He looked up when he was satisfied the three flowers he’d picked were securely attached in a circle, looking very satisfied.

“See?” He asked, presenting his work. Marinette almost burst out laughing at the sight. It was literally just a circle with three rose buttons on it. He looked so proud of it, though. 

“Not bad!” She complimented. “Not exactly the kind of base I’ve been working with, but we can build on it!”

She proceeded to explain how to improve his technique. He listened carefully, nodding along as she showed him on her own crown and mimicking her. It was really cute, and the way he beamed any time she would compliment his progress made her feel all warm inside.

“For you.” Chat said adoringly when he’d finished his first crown, as he reverently placed it on her head. He kissed her gently on the cheek before stepping back to appreciate his work. “Purr-fect. A real life purr-incess.” 

Marinette felt herself blush. “Thanks, kitty.” 

“Now another one!”

They spent the rest of the afternoon on the terrasse side by side, braiding flowers and foliage. Marinette made sure Chat reapplied sunscreen every once in a while to protect his identity. She’d never noticed how fair and delicate his skin was before. Probably because she’d never been this close to him in a situation where she could focus on her partner’s face, rather than on their surroundings. Had she not had a task at hand, she might have spent a bit too long examining Chat Noir’s face. There was something familiar about it, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. 

She gifted him a flower crown before he left, very aware of the proximity of Chat’s face as she adjusted it on his blond hair. “For my knight in leather armour.” She smiled. “A token of my gratitude.”

“I shall cherish it forever.” Chat bowed as he kissed her hand. “Thank you for letting me join you.”

“Always a pleasure, kitty-cat.”

Chat seemed to be skipping on the rooftops as he disappeared into the sunset. Later that week, Adrien published a photoshoot picture, wearing a flower crown. As much as she liked the picture, Marinette couldn’t help but think Chat Noir had worn it better. 

She blamed it on Spring.


	9. Day 14 - Chocolate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chat Noir comes to Marinette for help with his Valentine's Day present. Who it's for will surprise her!

For the first time in the three years they’d been in the same class, Marinette had given up on the idea of getting a Valentine’s Day present for Adrien. Alya had qualified her decision as “absolutely out of character” (”Girl, you tried to give him a gift for his fifth name day. HIS FIFTH NAME DAY. And you’re giving up for the most obvious love celebration in the world? Who _are_ you, and what have you done with my best friend?”). Marinette couldn’t deny that her heart still fluttered a little when her eyes met the model’s. He was still her celebrity crush, after all (although even that was arguable). It was just that somebody else had been slowly but surely crawling his way into her heart. A particularly infuriating cat. That she also happened to feel very comfortable around. 

They’d spent an increasing amount of time together over the years, both as Paris’ superheroes and out of costume. Well, as Marinette and Chat Noir. She still didn’t know who hid behind that mask of his, and he had no idea the two girls he spent most time with were, in fact, one and the same. They’d grown up together, and Marinette had found herself more and more attracted to her Chaton. She had to admit he’d become a lot more charismatic over the years.

Despite the obvious tension that existed between the two of them, Marinette couldn’t decide which of her personas should take the leap from being “good friends” to “significant others”. The logical choice would be to date him as Ladybug, but she was afraid Chat wouldn’t come and visit his favourite civilian anymore if he was dating his ultimate crush, and she actually sort of preferred their interactions when she didn’t have to worry about saving Paris. And even if he did, she wasn’t sure she’d be able to maintain her act for very long. She couldn’t talk it out with anyone, for obvious reasons, which sent her into waves of overthinking and delaying any sort of action. A new potential romantic relationship, back at square one: “procrastinate expressing your feelings”.

Marinette looked at her watch. Chat was late. With Valentine’s Day approaching, he’d asked her if she could teach him how to make macarons. Her parents had a meeting with investors to discuss the opening of a potential second bakery in one of the most touristic spots of the French capital, so the kitchens were free for at least a couple of hours. Her parents wouldn’t mind her using them, but she wasn’t sure her father would be thrilled by her company. He was still weary of the alley cat who’d “broken his daughter’s heart”, despite all of Marinette and Sabine’s efforts to change his mind.

She heard Chat’s landing despite his attempt at being more stealthy. She had developed a sort of 6th sense when it came to him; she was just _aware_ of his presence.

“Good afternoon, Princess!” He announced as he let himself in. “Sorry I’m late, I had a couple errands to run.”

He handed her a single red rose with a grin.

“Aren’t the red roses usually for Ladybug?” Marinette tilted her head quizzically.

“How do _you_ know that?” He narrowed his eyes.

“Oh, er…” Her mind raced to find a plausible excuse. “The Ladyblog! There are plenty of pictures of you chat-ting her up with red roses.”

“Ah, yes. I forget everything we do is mediatised these days.” He shook his head. “I don’t know, I just thought this could be a nice change.”

Marinette could have sworn she saw a hint of a blush appear on her partner’s cheeks. She decided not to jump to conclusions, though.

“It’s lovely. Thanks kitty.” She got on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek.

“Well it’s only natural.” He cleared his throat. “See, I really want to do something nice for this girl I like and…”

Chat rambled a bit as Marinette’s heart sank slightly. Which she realised was stupid, because chances were that girl was herself. With a mask.

“… Anyway, I have it from good authority that she likes chocolate macarons. And I really don’t want to give her cat-astrophic biscuits.” He concluded with a smile.

“Yes, that would be unfortunate.” She absentmindedly replied. “Let’s get to work, then!”

As usual when they cooked together, there was a bit of flour throwing which left them both slightly dishevelled, but Chat was more focused today than he usually was. Probably something to do with the fact he wanted this to be just right. He mimicked Marinette’s actions, checking frequently he hadn’t made any mistakes in the recipe.

“One of the most crucial parts of cooking is tasting,” Marinette said, dipping a finger in the batter and licking it. Chat imitated her. “See, it tastes nice and chocolate-y, but the bitterness will be enhanced by the cooking, so we need to add sugar.” She reached for the packet as she spoke. 

“Wait, you got a little something there.” Chat said, pointing above his lips. Marinette licked in the direction he was indicating, but the chocolate was just beyond her reach.

“Better?” She asked.

“Not quite… It’s really just… Actually it’ll be easier if I just get it for you.” 

In one, smooth step, he was right in front of her. He loomed over her now, having continued growing long after she had. His hand flew to her cheek, his thumb barely brushing against the top of her lips. He paused, cupping her face in his hand.

And suddenly his lips were on hers. He tasted like chocolate, which Marinette appreciated as she kissed him back, her hands flying to his soft hair. He pulled her closer as he deepened the kiss. She felt him smile against her lips.

“What?” She gasped for air. He leaned his forehead against her, panting slightly.

“You have no idea how long I’ve waited for this, princess.” He purred.

Her heart skipped a beat. She stood on her toes, ready to kiss him again, but he gently pushed her away and sighed. 

“I didn’t want it to happen this way, but you’re just so… purr-fect, I couldn’t resist.”

“What do you mean?” He had completely lost her.

“I’ve had a couple of conversations with Ladybug, and from what I gathered she wasn’t very fond of the idea that we -superheroes- could date a civilian. So I wanted to approach you at school. My identity would have remained a secret, and all would have been well in the world.”

“Wait, we know each other?” 

“You’ll be the judge of that next week.” He winked. “Now, you were saying, these aren’t sweet enough?”

Marinette tried to bring back the conversation to his identity, but Chat kept evading her questions, a satisfied smile on his lips from having piqued her interest. She felt his confidence wobble when she backed him against the warm oven where their creations were cooking, but he stood his ground.

“I’m paw-sitive I’m worth the wait, Princess. We’ve waited this long for me to ask you out, what’s another couple of days?” 

She kept her guard up all day on Valentine’s day, waiting for the promised sign. More than once, she was tempted to call it off. Did she really want to know Chat’s real identity? Would she be able to keep hers a secret? Did she _have_ to keep it a secret?…

At around 4pm, she sat on her own in the courtyard, taking a small break between two class periods. She pretended to read through some of her notes as she actively tried to calm down. She didn’t notice someone approaching until a box was shoved under her nose.

“Hey Marinette, would you like a macaron?” She looked up into Adrien’s green eyes. “I made too many and I hear they’re just the way you like them… Princess.”

Her jaw dropped. Maybe everything was going to be a lot more simple than she’d anticipated after all.


	10. Day 15 - Friendship

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Marinette is once again hit with Adrien's "good friend" attack, making her wonder whether she should just give up. Chat Noir reassures her.

“Hey Kitty?” Marinette asked, absentmindedly stroking Chat’s hair as she lay in her deckchair in the Sun.

Chat Noir was sitting on the floor, his back to the chair, reading the latest book Marinette was studying in French class. As much as she’d enjoyed it, she thought it odd that he’d choose that particular book when there were much more attractive options in her library, much more fitting for a Sunday afternoon of hanging out on her terrasse. Chat had simply retorted that although he might not seem like it he was actually a very cultured cat, and that she ought to have known as much by now. After all, he could hardly say that between the photo shoots, fencing, basketball, Chinese lessons, class and saving Paris, he hadn’t had time to finish it.

“Yes Princess?” He replied, turning the page. She was too lost in her contemplations to notice the very low purr that emanated from his chest.

“How do you feel about friendship?”

Chat looked up at her quizzically, and put down his book to face her. She was staring at the sky, so he stole a look at it as well.

“What bizarrely-shaped cloud could have paw-ssibly prompted that question?”

“None in particular.” She lied. Her mind had wandered while sunbathing, going back to the last week’s events. She had, once again, overheard Adrien calling her a ‘good friend’ in the locker room, despite them having spent more time together without her being a catastrophic mess around him. There had even been a couple of instances when she’d thought maybe, just maybe, the chemistry between them was so strong that he’d _have_ to have noticed it. It seemed like there was _actual_ flirting going on. She was starting to wonder if boys and girls had the same definition of the word ‘friend’. And who better than her resident boy/cat friend to check?

“So?” She asked again expectantly, shifting in her seat to focus on his face.

“Fur-iendship.” Chat articulated, as if tasting the word. “Well, for me, friendship is the most beautiful thing in the world. What would one be, without friends? People to talk to, to joke with, to hang out with… People who have your back, who you can count on, but who can also count on you! People you choose and who choose you to spend time with, above others. People who will listen and who you can listen to when they’re talking about what they love. It’s just… beautiful.” 

His description continued, but Marinette was distracted by the sudden change in Chat’s body language. He seemed more… relaxed, his bright green eyes looking in the distance, almost shining as he spoke. A blissful smile was plastered on his lips. She caught herself thinking that the way his face lit up in his passionate discourse sort of reminded her of Adrien. In that it was adorable, not that it was attractive. Chat Noir had nothing on Adrien.

“… I just love my friends.” He concluded, bringing his focus back on Marinette. Their eyes met, jolting her back into reality. 

“I see.” She nodded, pretending she’d listened to his whole speech. “But are there some friends you might love more than others?”

“Well, you know how I feel about Ladybug.” He smiled fondly at the thought of her.

“So Ladybug is your friend…” Marinette commented thoughtfully. 

“Definitely! Well, I think so, anyway. Why, did she say anything about us not being friends?” His face decomposed.

“No, no, no! Of course you’re Ladybug’s friend!” Marinette said hurriedly. Perhaps a little _too_ much so, given the intrigued look Chat gave her in response. “I was just wondering if being friends and, you know, _liking_ someone were incompatible, but I guess not!” She laughed awkwardly.

Inside, though, she felt an immense feeling of relief, that had her embrace her Chaton in a tight hug. She even giddily kissed the top of his head. All was not lost with Adrien.

“Thanks, Chat!” She affectionately mussed his hair. “You’re the best friend a girl could ever ask for.”

“You’re welcome?…” Chat smiled, amused by his companion’s enthusiasm. Asking her why she seemed like such an expert on how Ladybug felt about him completely slipped his mind, replaced by one thought:

Boy, was he lucky to have Marinette as a friend.


	11. Day 16 - Do not disturb

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In which Chat Noir takes Adrien's place at a fitting. Marinette is not pleased.

Marinette was trying _really_ hard not to murder Chat Noir. Or at least, not to maim him. This was hard, considering she was holding at least a dozen pins in her mouth as she crouched next to him, and a pair of scissors in her right hand. Not to mention the fabric she had in her left hand, for which she had a couple of uses in mind for cat punishing. Ladybug wasn’t the only one who could get creative with random objects.

“Oh cheer up, Princess, surely it can’t be that claw-ful that I asked for you to dress me?” Chat joked, stealing a look at his purr-sonal seamstress. The death glare he received in response made him re-think his strategy to make her lighten up.

He -well, Adrien- had been so bored until she’d arrived. Fittings were always the worst, especially when they took place at the Grand Paris Hotel, where Chloé was on his back the whole time. He _did_ like Chloé -she was his oldest friend after all-, but she could be a bit much sometimes. So when he’d seen Marinette enter the building, he’d had a brilliant idea to take a break. 

It hadn’t been easy to pull off his plan, but somehow it had worked out. An old voicemail from Nathalie and a recording of his own voice had done the trick. To both Chloé and Marinette’s utter disappointment, Adrien had walked away, “double-booked” for the day. And Chat Noir had waltzed in to take his place, needing a new suit for some obscure event, grateful for his model friend Adrien to have warned him that he could take his spot. After learning Ladybug wouldn’t be joining him, Chloé had stomped back to her room. There was no way she was going to hang out with an alley cat.

Marinette had seen right through his act, though. She was absolutely certain that Adrien’s sudden disappearance had something to do with Chat Noir, and not that the latter’s appearance had something to do with the former’s leaving. She had _told_ Chat Noir how excited she was about today. This was supposed to have been the best afternoon of her life. She had been personally contacted to design Adrien’s next photo shoot outfit. Not just the hat. Everything. It was supposed to have been her and Adrien, alone, or almost, the whole time. She’d rehearsed conversation topics to avoid being too much of a blabbering mess as she worked. She had even brought back-up passion-fruit macarons. And it had all gone to waste. Because of one self-absorbed cat.

“Couldn’t this wait until next week?” She asked, holding her measuring tape along his lanky, yet muscular legs and aggressively scribbling some numbers down on a notepad. “Today was a big deal for me. Couldn’t you have asked me to do this, I don’t know, anytime you were at my place last week?”

Chat gulped as she stabbed a pin in his suit as a way of holding one of the fabric options she had. He sure was glad the leather was thick.

“And did you _have_ to leave that ‘do not disturb’ sign on the door?” She sighed exasperatedly. “People are going to think we’re… up to something. Couldn’t we have just stayed in the lobby?” She could feel herself blushing at the insinuations they were bound to receive when they left the room.

“I could think of much, much worse people to be paired with in the news. Actually I think you and Ladybug are the only two people I’d happily accept as my rumoured partners.” Chat’s thoughts went back to that one time they’d -Adrien and Marinette- been caught in the Place des Vosges fountain. The speculations of the press had actually made him smile. He really didn’t mind people thinking they were a couple. Marinette was the best.

Except when she was angry. Then she became scary. Just like his Lady.

Marinette rolled her eyes. Why did he have to say cute things like that, when she was actively trying to hold a grudge? “And of course I could think of worse people as well for myself.” She sighed, her voice softening. “I’m sorry kitty, this is just not a very good day for me. Or for my brand.”

“I’m sorry.” His hand tentatively reached down to her head and patted it gently. In his rush to get some time off, he’d overlooked her feelings, and he felt bad for it. He couldn’t help it, though, there was something about Marinette that soothed him. And she seemed to relax a bit when Chat was with her, too. Like there were less pans on the stove when they were together. He’d be happy spending all his free time with her if he could. “I’ll paw-sernally make sure that Adrien gets another fitting slot with you.”

“You can do that?” Marinette’s voice was both hopeful and dubious.

“Well, he and I are quite claw-se, you see. From the Miraculous movie dubbing. I gave him a couple pointers on how to sound like me.” He added, Marinette seemingly doubting his allegations.

“Riiiiight.” She put her sewing kit away, got up and brushed her knees. “Anyway, I think that’s me done, you’ll have your suit by next week.”

She started making mental calculations about how long it would take her to make it, and Adrien’s, on top of all the work she had for class and the inevitable akumatisations that interrupted their weeks. As if reading her thoughts (it could also have been him taking in her dawning hyperventilation and the slight panic in her eyes), Chat put his hand on her shoulder.

“You know what, don’t worry about me. You can use this for Adrien, I think we’re about the same size. I’ll tell him to pop by your place for you to make the final adjustments?”

She stammered a response, her mind immediately focused on Adrien Agreste IN HER ROOM. She’d have to hide all the pictures. The schedule. The gifts. 

“Anyway, thanks Marinette.” He kissed his frozen friend on the forehead, chuckling lightly at her reaction.

As he left, he made a mental note to alter his diet a bit this week, to make sure his measurements changed even just a bit. He couldn’t have Marinette discovering who he was over one selfish plan. Ladybug would never forgive him for being so careless.


	12. Day 17 - Balcony

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Marinette needs help rehearsing her class play. Who better than Chat Noir to help her run her lines?

Marinette paced on her terrasse, mouthing her lines. Miss Bustier had decided to make the study of _Cyrano de Bergerac_ a little more fun for her class by staging the play for the end-of-year show. Only a few scenes had been retained, including the famous balcony scene in which Cyrano comes to the handsome Christian’s help to woo the beautiful and witty Roxane. 

The young girl had been cast as Roxane for the scene, with Adrien as Christian and Max as Cyrano. She was very excited about the part. She had decided to step out of the shadows for the play, although she would also be making the costumes. She was curious about what being onstage would be like, and what better way to find out than in front of her classmates? And playing a character that inspired her - although Roxane could be perceived as shallow, Marinette thought it was actually nice that a woman would scorn a man because of his lack of wit, despite his good looks. Also, she couldn’t help but notice the irony of her role. For once, it would be Adrien at loss for words when talking to her and she the confident one, rather than the other way around. Even if it was just for a short amount of time. 

She stopped in her tracks, her body mimicking her mind that had just blanked on her next line. She threw her head back, eyes closed in exasperation as she attempted to visualise what came next on the sheet of paper she was holding. She was about to summon Tikki to come and help her (the Kwami was hanging out somewhere in her room, probably next to Marinette’s stash of macarons) when she heard a very faint thud coming from the nearby roof. She carefully opened one eye, which was greeted by an intrigued-looking Chat Noir, his amused head slightly tilted to the side as he leaned on his baton.

“Cat got your tongue, Princess?” He asked, smoothly hopping down to join her. 

“Just having trouble memorising my lines.” She smiled. “What are you doing here?” 

“Nothing much. Thought I’d come hang out for a bit. Purr-haps I can help you while I’m here?” He held out a hand, and she instinctively gave him her text.

To tell the truth, ‘hanging out’ wasn’t the only reason Chat Noir had come over. Adrien had actually spotted her acting out her scene from the school entrance as he made his way down to the car after his fencing practise. He was still slightly disappointed by the play’s auditions. He’d only been given Christian’s role because of his looks, when he’d actually had his eye on the title role. Not to be the center of the play, but to be seen as something more than just a pretty model, for once. A bit like when he was being Chat. The only advantage of being Christian was that his Roxane was Marinette rather than Chloé, in whose arms Cyrano would be dying at the end. The heiress had been torn between demanding to switch with Marinette to share her scene with her Adrikins and keeping her own, which was a lot more dramatic. Miss Bustier had ruled it out for her; the casting was final, including the act they’d play in.

Which hadn’t prevented Adrien from learning Cyrano’s part on top of his own. Which he now recited.

“What a coincidence that your school would also study _Cyrano_ , and that you would know the dialogue for exactly this scene!” Marinette said, incredulous.

“Look at you speaking almost in Alexandrine,” he teased, using the verse himself to hide the fact it wasn’t as much of a coincidence as she thought. “That’s not the line though, you’re supposed to say…”

They continued to rehearse, Marinette sitting on the chimney to give herself a sense of height, while Chat sat on her deckchair, almost hidden from her sight. Looking at her, comfortably swinging her feet as she spoke Roxane’s passionate replies, he couldn’t help but think how beautiful and carefree she looked. 

“You’re amazing, Marinette.” He said as she finished her line, his smile spreading to his masked eyes as he stood up, absentmindedly brushing inexistant dust from his knees.

She looked at him curiously as she tried to figure out who he reminded her of in this particular moment, then shook her head. “You’re already leaving?” She asked, slightly disappointed. “But we haven’t finished the scene yet!”

“I’ve done my part.” He handed her the paper, and she skim read the last pages. Cyrano didn’t have any more lines. “Purr-haps you could get Christian to help you with the end bit? Who did you say was playing him?” He smiled maliciously.

“A-Adrien Agreste.” She replied in a flat voice, rediscovering the scene’s ending. Roxane kissed Christian. And then got married to him.

Which meant she would be kissing and marrying Adrien.

“The model? No kitten!” He tried to read her expression as he took her hand and kissed it. He couldn’t tell if she was terrified or over the Moon. Both emotions seemed to flicker in her eyes. 

Hesitantly, she bent down, cupping his face with her hands. And kissed him gently.

Chat Noir’s heart fluttered in his chest at the soft brush of her lips. Before he could react, she pulled away, a slight blush on her cheeks.

“What was that for?” He squawked more than he asked.

“That was my next line.” She gave him a very Ladybug smile. She had to rehearse it at least once before facing Adrien. What if it went terribly? Chat Noir was a great guinea pig. It’s not like they’d never kissed before.

“Right. Of course.” He cleared his throat and patted her knees. “ _Excellent_ delivery. Keep up the good work. I- er, I really should get going though.”

Marinette couldn’t believe her eyes. Had she _flustered_ Chat Noir? Was that even possible? Even as Ladybug, she wasn’t sure she’d ever seen him so… disorientated? He turned back just before reaching the railing, his expression indecipherable. “ _Really_ good job today. See you later, Purr-incess.”

He hopped off, his purr finally erupting freely as he jumped from one rooftop to the next, his mind still on that impromptu kiss. Forget playing Cyrano, he was _so_ looking forward to being Christian. And getting kissed by Marinette again. For the sake of the play, of course. She was such a great actress, he couldn’t wait for her talent to be revealed. Nothing to do with the warmth he felt in his chest at the mere thought of her.


	13. Day 18 - Banana

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In which Marinette and Chat Noir argue about who knows Ladybug best.

“Apple.”

“Banana.”

“Apple.”

“Banana.”

“ _Apple._ ”

“BANANA.”

“You know, saying it louder won’t make it truer.” Marinette sing-songed, stealing an amused look at Chat. “And I’m telling you, Ladybug’s favourite fruit are apples.”

“No way. It’s definitely bananas.” Chat shook his head, his arms crossed over his chest. “This whole discussion is bananas, as if I didn’t know My Lady well enough.” He muttered under his breath.

“Oh yeah? And how do you know that?” She cocked an eyebrow.

Somehow, an innocent conversation about Ladybug’s birthday -which had been leaked by Marinette to the Ladyblog the day before- had degenerated into figuring out which fruit was Ladybug’s favourite. 

“Because- because she told me! The last time Banananoir came to save the day.” Chat smiled smugly, although Marinette could see the cogs turning in his head in an attempt to remember something Ladybug might have said, but definitely hadn’t. In fact, her exact words had been “Well, if it isn’t my favourite fruit _man_.” Nothing to to do with the fruit he was indeed impersonating. He could have been dressed as a bunch of grapes, she would have said the same thing. 

“Riiiiight.” Marinette drawled out, squinting slightly. She had trouble containing her smile.

“And what makes you such a Ladybug expert, anyway?” Chat turned towards her. “You hardly speak about her. Or _with_ her. In fact, I’ve only ever seen the both of you together once. If it weren’t for that, I might start wondering if _you’re_ not Ladybug.” 

He moved closer to her, squinting in suspicion as he gently lifted one of her pigtails. His nose crinkled slightly as he sniffed her. 

“Me? Ladybug? Pffft, no way!” She gracefully moved out of his reach, chuckling awkwardly. “I just know because… because it’s a Moon thing! And _my_ favourite fruit are apples!” She cried out in epiphany. 

When Alya had asked Ladybug when her birthday was, to let Paris know when to properly celebrate, the superhero had given a fake date to avoid people tracing back to her. You never knew with Hawkmoth, he’d be capable of dissecting birth records in order to find her. She had, however, chosen the day before her own birthday, to make it easier to remember. At the end of the interview, the aspiring reporter had called her best friend, gushing about how lucky Marinette was to share a birthday Moon cycle with Ladybug.

“Riiiiight.” Chat mimicked her earlier response. “Just kidding though, I know you’re not Ladybug. I know her so well I would recognise her immediately if I saw her in her civilian form.” He looked lovingly into the distance.

It took all of Marinette’s willpower to restrain from bursting out laughing. _If only he knew._ “Have you ever seen her eat a banana though?”

“Have _you_ seen her eat a single apple?”

“ _Touché._ ”

Agreeing that they had reached a stalemate, the two friends parted, promising they’d continue the discussion when they had received more information from the expert herself. Which conveniently happened during Ladybug and Chat’s next patrol, when Ladybug casually strolled to their usual spot on the rooftops, eating an apple.

“Sorry, I didn’t have time to have tea. And what better than _my favourite fruit_ to compensate?” She looked at him expectantly as she took another bite.

Chat’s baffled, gaping face and the fact she’d been able to use Chat’s signature “Cat got your tongue?” line on him were worth enough for Marinette to ignore the fact he never brought up the subject with her again. She noticed, though, that he came to see her more often if he needed Ladybug taste information that could not be found on the Ladyblog. Which she wasn’t going to complain about at all.


	14. Day 19 - Tuxedo Chat

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one follows Day 16. Marinette ends up making a suit for Chat Noir. A suppressed memory resurfaces.

Ladybug and Chat Noir stood awkwardly at the top of the Eiffel Tower, their patrol finished, but not quite wanting to leave yet. There was something to be said about spending time on Paris landmarks at night, almost alone. It was like some kind of magic settled around you, like being in your own snow globe. Any brutal mouvements would disturb the harmony and break the spell.

“I really should go, I have some homework to do.” Chat said reluctantly. He was in no hurry to get Home, where he’d be eating alone, as always. His father seemed to get busier by the day, and Nathalie unfortunately joined the designer a lot to ensure the development of the Gabriel Agreste Spring collection stayed on track. 

His hunched back, flopped ears and overall resigned expression screamed his reticence to leave, so Ladybug decided to buy him a little time.

“Oh by the way, I saw Marinette Dupain-Cheng earlier and she asked me to tell you she finished your suit.” She ventured. “She told me you can come by anytime to adjust it.”

“Like right meow?” The way his face lit up might have made her jealous had they been talking about him going to see any other girl.

“I don’t know, but I’m sure you can check? Worst case scenario, she says it’s too late, or that she’s busy.” She shrugged, pushing away the thought that she would never be to busy for him, nor would he ever be too late. “Later, Chaton!”

She left with a well executed swing of her yoyo, intent on getting a head start on him.

With Chat Noir having promptly acted on his paw-mise (his words, not Marinette’s) to get Marinette and Adrien another slot for her to make him try on her designs, the young girl had felt guilty about snapping at him and had ended up making him a suit anyway. It was the least she could do, since he’d also somehow managed to get her an extension in the time she had to design her Agreste collection.

Marinette detransformed as she landed on her bed, quickly rustling around her room to get all her sewing kit out. She was consolidating a button that had come slightly loose when she heard a soft knock on her skylight. She climbed to her mezzanine, securing her sewing knot as she did so, and opened her window to let her visitor in.

“Hey Marinette, hope I’m not…”

“How timely! I was just finishing up your shirt.” She waved him in.

“You don’t look very surprised to see me.” Chat looked almost disappointed.

“Kitty, you’ve come over pretty much every evening this week. I would’ve been surprised if you _hadn’t_ come over tonight.” She cheekily smiled at him over her shoulder as she went down the stairs.

Chat blushed imperceptibly and followed her. He took a seat on her chaise as she reached for one of the cover bags hanging on a rail and took out its contents. 

“Here, you can try it on.” She hesitated. “Do you need a screen, or…”

“Nah don’t worry, this catsuit is staying on.” 

Even if he technically wasn’t naked, she still felt uncomfortable looking at him dress so she turned around and fidgeted with her sewing machine.

“Marinette, this is… wow.” He breathed out after a while, which she took as a cue to look at him. 

Just as she’d thought, the cut she’d chosen fit him perfectly. Marinette looked at him proudly parade around her room in the tuxedo, and was unable to refrain from thinking about how handsome he looked. Well, that might not have been the exact word she used. She chuckled as he marvelled about the white, kitten-shaped buttons she’d used for the shirt, the hole she’d left for his bell, the paw-shaped cufflinks, the matching green tie and pocket handkerchief.

“Wait, you forgot something.” She carefully reached for his lower back and threaded his tail through a specially-made opening. 

His excited gasp made her very giddy inside. “I love it, you’ve thought about everything!”

He hugged her tightly, taking her by surprise, and kissed her on the head. He let go of her before she could react, having spotted her full-size mirror.

“This is truly the cat’s meow, I’m halfway to becoming a white cat!” He joked as he examined himself in the mirror, a satisfied smile drawn to his lips.

Marinette visibly shuddered at the thought and sat down, a vague memory, almost a concept, appearing in her mind. Why could she visualise a Chat Blanc? And why did he feel like bad news?

“Are you alright, Purr-incess?” Chat turned around, worry filling his eyes.

“Yes, it’s- it’s nothing.” She replied, her gaze slightly distant as her hand flew to her forehead as if to check if she had a fever. She sounded like Nathalie. 

He rushed to her, gently taking her in his arms. She nuzzled against him, her eyes closed, trying to shake away the feeling of dread that had overcome her. She felt him purr lightly against her cheek, his hand rubbing her arm up and down in a comforting gesture. She breathed deeply, his familiar cheesy, leather-y scent calming her as she did so. 

After what felt like forever, in the best possible way, she broke away, putting on a brave face as she did so. 

“Sorry, I really don’t know what happened there.” She apologised.

“Well if that’s the effect this suit has on ladies, I’m not sure I should wear it!” He attempted to laugh, but his eyes still showed how concerned he was.

“I’m sure it wasn’t anything serious. It’s probably just getting late.” 

“Yes, I’d better let you get to bed.” He got “undressed” and stuffed the suit back in its bag, then took Marinette’s hand and carefully escorted her up to her bed. “Thank you, Princess. This is honestly one of the best gifts you’ve given me.” He kissed her forehead, ignoring her confused look. “Just… just paw-mise you won’t overwork yourself too much?”

“I paw-mise, kitty.” She kissed him back on the cheek. “And I promise I’ll tell you if this happens again.”

“Good.” He hopped up on the balcony. “Sleep tight Princess.”

“You too Chat. Don’t let the Ladybugs bite.” She winked.

She heard him laugh as he made his way back Home. She held on to the happy sound to fall into a peaceful slumber, in which piercing blue eyes did not make a single appearance.


	15. Days 20&22 - Cat got your tongue & kiss

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chat Noir goes missing after leaving Marinette a cryptic message.

Marinette waited anxiously on her balcony, scrutinising the rooftops. There was something ominous about the note Chat Noir had left during his previous visit. She had been asleep already, finally giving into the exhaustion that had built up over the course of the previous month; the Akuma attacks had been as relentless as her teachers piling up homework. And Chat’s visits hadn’t helped either, although she refused to blame him for her state. She loved having him around, their time together had been the only moments when she’d felt completely relaxed. 

He hadn’t come around since leaving the note, and that had been three days ago. He’d also bailed on patrol ever since. It had been the longest she hadn’t seen him since… Well, since she could remember. She had tried to probe what was going on as Ladybug, since she actually had a way to communicate with him, but every call went straight to voicemail. And Marinette was so desperate to hear his voice she listened to it every time, the familiar “cat got your tongue?” imprinted in her brain to the point that she could _hear_ him in her mind. The fact he wouldn’t reply, not even with a text, to Ladybug made her think something was definitely wrong.

She looked down to the piece of paper she was holding, although she didn’t need to see it to know exactly what it said. The note, which used to be smoothly folded in two, was now severely crinkled from her nervous re-reads, but the writing had held on. “Can you meet me on your roof at 8pm in three days? I need to talk to you. CN” He’d added the date, presumably to clarify when they were to meet up in case she hadn’t found the message immediately, and a black and green paw print. No mention of what it was he needed to talk to her about, nor of why he’d be going AWOL for the next few days.

Finally, she heard the soft “clink” of metal against tiles and the familiar sound of Chat’s baton retracting behind the chimneys that limited her balcony. Marinette turned around to face the direction of the sound, leaning as nonchalantly as she could on the railing, arms crossed above her chest. She’d thought about how to react when she saw him a lot, various scenarios including her yelling at him for being so cryptic and hugging him if he looked alright (she’d tried not to focus on the possibility that he might be hurt). After pondering it for a while, she thought the best thing was probably to let him explain himself. As far as she knew, she and Chat Noir were about the same age, so if she felt tired and slightly overwhelmed, chances were that he was in the same boat.

One thing she hadn’t prepared for, however, was him arriving with a full bouquet of red roses. And a dishevelled look that gave away that he, too, had struggled with sleep since they’d last seen each other.

“Hi.” She -almost- squeaked, her voice catching in her throat at the sight. She couldn’t help it, her legs moved automatically to bring her closer to him, and her hands seemed to fly of their own accord to his face and his torso, checking for any damage. When they seemed confident he was fine, however, one of them balled up into a fist and hit him on the shoulder, perhaps a little stronger than Marinette would have had she been thinking.

“Meowch.” Chat jumped backwards, rubbing his arm. “What was that for, Purr-incess?”

“Er, what about leaving the worst message ever, and then not giving a sign of life? Even Ladybug couldn’t reach you.” She scowled. So much for hearing him out. 

“You were worried about me?” A genuine smile spread on his face. She noticed his tail move to a vertical position, the end twitching slightly. He looked like a kid on Christmas day, having discovered the gift he wanted most within a pile of presents. “Enough to ask Ladybug about me?” 

“You can’t just go around distributing notes like that and expect people not to expect the worst.” She rolled her eyes.

Chat tried his best to keep a straight face, but the twinkle in his eyes betrayed his delight at the information. “Sorry, Marinette, I really didn’t mean to scare you. You… you just looked so tired, I thought I’d give you some space so you could recover. I’ve slightly overworked myself too, that’s why LB didn’t get any news either.”

“Next time maybe you could add that to your letter? Might avoid people getting too anxious.” _Well, one person in particular._ “Anyway, what are those for?” Marinette’s attention, now reassured about the health and safety of her favourite cat, had been redirected to the flowers he was holding.

“You mean _who_ are these for?” He replied, his mischievous expression back. “Well, Princess, these would be for you.” He offered her the flowers. Her first reflex was to smell them. They were as fragrant as a Summer day.

“What’s the occasion?” Although she was trying to maintain a calm voice, her heart rate started to pick up, and she felt a warm blush creep up her cheeks.

“Well, see, Marinette, the reason I needed to talk to you is because I had an epiphany.” He used wide gestures, but something in his eyes let her know that he wasn’t as confident about this as he was letting on.

“An epiphany, really?” She cocked an eyebrow.

“Absolutely. The other day, I was sitting somewhere or another with LB, the sun was setting, birds chirping, ladida, and she put her head on my shoulder.” That had been a slight moment of weakness from Marinette. She didn’t know exactly why, but she felt more comfortable being affectionate with Chat when he came over than when they were on patrol together, probably because then she could shed the responsibilities of her alter ego. “And normally, I get slightly flustered when she does stuff like that, but that day, the only thing I was thinking was how much I wished it was you there instead of her.” He took the smirk she was trying so hard to conceal - _oh, the irony_ \- as an invitation to continue.

“I wanted to talk to you about it, but when I came around you were asleep and you were so peaceful I couldn’t decently wake you. I took that as a sign that I should give myself some time to think, because with the infatuation I had for LB I thought maybe… maybe I was just very tired.”

Marinette’s face had contorted into something rather indecipherable for the poor boy. Truth be told, she couldn’t quite unravel it herself. A part of her wanted to laugh. At the situation, in relief (because even if this _was_ a serious matter, she and Chat Noir… dating? Possibly?, it was a lot less serious than what she had imagined), with joy. The other part of her wanted to cry, basically for the same reasons. A while ago, she’d caught herself thinking exactly what he was thinking, in a moment when Adrien and her had been alone, his arm around her waist as he corrected her fencing position. It made no sense, of course. Why would _Chat Noir_ be the one tilting up her arm, his own warm against hers, tilting her hand to bring the sword slightly inside, his face close to hers as he almost whispered the instructions in her ear? 

From then on, she’d paid more attention to signals of her attraction to Chat. How had so many piled up without her noticing? The fact he looked good in that leather suit (to say she’d once rolled her eyes, and thought that he was just showing off), that she craved his laugh, his puns, his presence at her side, that she missed him as soon as he left her. She just hadn’t taken the time to talk to him. Which she knew she could do. Unlike with Adrien, talking to Chat was easy.

“No offence!” Chat Noir’s eyes were filled with horror at the thought that he could have upset her; her neutral facial expression, like the calm before a storm, and silence let him think he’d had. _He_ was used to a chat-tier Marinette, he hadn’t intended on rambling on like this.

A smile finally erupted on her face, and she felt the bouquet slip from her grasp as her hands flew to Chat’s hair, tangling themselves into it as she closed the distance between them, their lips colliding midway. He didn’t react at first, his brain not having had the time to process the situation. 

When it did, though, his arms tightened around her waist, bringing her ever closer. He answered her passion with enthusiasm, smiling against her lips as they kissed in the moonlight. They were frozen in time, yet not, spinning, yet firmly anchored to the ground. 

Marinette finally interrupted the kiss, the need for oxygen temporarily greater than her urge to kiss Chat. _Her_ Chat. Her forehead against his, panting slightly as she breathed, she noticed his expression of mixed awe and disbelief. 

“Is that something a purr-son who has taken offence would do?” She grinned. 

Chat remained silent, a slightly dumbfounded look on his face. 

“Well then, Kitty, cat got your tongue?” Marinette prompted again, a twinkle in her eye.

“I love you so much, you know that?” He finally whispered, his smile the best thing she had ever seen.

“Me, too.” Her answer was almost drowned by Chat Noir swooping in for another kiss.


	16. Days 21&22 - Fireworks & kiss

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Marinette and Chat Noir make plans for Bastille Day

There are two teams in Paris for Bastille Day: on the one hand, the people who go on holiday in July, shunning the famous Eiffel Tower fireworks for a less urban scenery, generally on one of France’s coasts where the heat is less oppressive. On the other hand, those who holiday in August, by choice or otherwise, or those who simply don’t, who take all the celebrations as a compensation for not being able to escape. 

Marinette Dupain-Cheng and Adrien Agreste were on the latter team. Due to the success of her parents’ bakery, Marinette generally only got away from the City of Lights for one week at the beginning of August, business being slower as the _Juillettistes_ returned and the _Aoûtiens_ left. As for Adrien, it had been a while since his father had taken a holiday; the only travelling any of them did was strictly for business, and generally never in Summer. They were virtually the only people in their class left in the capital. 

Although aware of the other’s presence in Paris, neither knew how to reach out to suggest spending time together. And with both of their main wing people, Alya and Nino, away, it seemed like contact wouldn’t be made anytime soon. Unbeknownst to the two teenagers, both had considered visiting the other as their alter ego, and had even tried. Marinette had chickened out when she’d seen him sitting at his desk, not knowing how to justify her presence, and fearing she might reveal herself if she spoke with him. Adrien had simply not found her as he repeatedly swung by her place right after patrol, hoping to bump into her. 

Having seen Chat Noir snoop around outside her room, obviously looking for her, several times in a row, having made it to her place before she could, Marinette decided maybe she should take action before Chat could connect the dots. Feigning something about relatives coming into town, Ladybug bailed on him for patrol on the 13th of July, and Marinette made sure to be obvious on her balcony. She didn’t know what he wanted with her, but knowing she would be seeing him made her feel all giddy inside. He was pretty much the only person she talked to in person these days, apart from her parents. They both seemed slightly reticent at the thought of leaving each other at the end of patrol, and the thought that she could get some extra time with her (male) best friend made her feel better.

“Well hello, there, Purr-incess!” Chat’s smile was as bright as sunshine as he landed next to her. “I was starting to lose hope that I’d see you before the end of the Summer!”

“Aw, that’s cute, you really came to check on me?” She opened her eyes wide, exaggerating her surprise. She liked playing slightly dumb with him, although the more time she spent with him, the less she was inclined to do it. Something about wanting to impress him somehow? Had she not been thinking about Adrien so much she might have started thinking she was developing feelings for her partner.

“Well, you know, the bakery’s open, things had moved in your room between the first and the second time I came around… Just thought you might be there.” He shrugged as he scratched the back of his head slightly sheepishly.

“You must have been around when I was visiting my grandfather.” She half-lied. She did see him every other day, but generally in the morning, to make pastries with him. “Had I known you’d be coming, I would have changed my schedule around, though, it’s not like much is happening right now.” She smiled tightly, her gaze falling on the empty street below them. There were usually a comfortable flow of passer-bys at this time of the evening.

“I know exactly what you mean.” Chat sighed, leaning his elbows on the railing, his back slightly slumped. “I miss school.”

“You don’t mean that!” She gasped. “They’ll hear you and give you holiday homework.” She half-whispered, suspiciously looking around them. It brought a smile to his previously pouting lips.

“What are you doing tomorrow night?” He turned around, the railing now against his back as he looked at her, affection seeping from his eyes.

“Tomorrow? For the _Quatorze Juillet_?” She tilted her head, pretending to think when she knew the plan would be the usual, staying in with her parents, and catching the fireworks from the exact place they were standing in later. “Nothing in particular, why?”

“Want to watch the fireworks from a rooftop claw-ser to the Eiffel Tower?” Chat Noir had intended to ask Ladybug that exact question, but it was her loss for not showing up tonight. And he wasn’t going to invite her along, he had some catching up to do with Marinette.

“Sounds great!” She grinned, her smile spreading to her pretty blue eyes. 

“I’ll pick you up at 7pm then?”

“Can’t wait!” 

Chat left with a slight spring in his step, excited to spend time with his good friend. And also imagining how pretty she would look in the dappled coloured light of fireworks. 

—

He probably shouldn’t have been surprised by the fact she was carrying a basket full of provisions when they met up the next day. Leave it to her to think of all the little details that made events like this one perfect. His stomach rumbled at the thought of the T&S bakery quiche he could smell thanks to his excellent cat senses. He had reached for the basket ( _obviously_ to offer to carry it for her, not to eat from it), but Marinette had flicked him lightly on the nose with a smirk at the sound, asking him to be patient.

Her confidence and playfulness had wavered slightly as they landed on top of the Agreste’s _hôtel particulier_. It was a prime spot to watch the show, being quite literally at the foot of the main attraction.

“Are you sure we can be here?” She asked, afraid to move too much. What if they were caught? What if _Adrien_ caught them? 

“Paw-sitive. Adrien and his father are at an event tonight, no one’s Home.” _Ha_. She still looked slightly flustered at the thought of being in someone’s property, especially someone she knew. He wished he could tell her that actually Adrien was here, speaking to her, and that’s how he knew the others had a day off (Gorilla) or were in Tokyo (Gabriel and Nathalie). “I asked Adrien, don’t worry, he’s fine with us being here. And we agreed not to tell his father.”

The information seemed to appease her. Marinette smiled brightly at him and got the picnic supplies out, spreading a blanket at their feet to set their makeshift table on. He helped her lay out the food, amazed at the quantities contained in the basket. He couldn’t wait for the passion fuit macarons he’d spotted. 

They chatted as they ate, Chat happy to finally talk to someone about something else than his schedule and his piano rehearsals. He liked seeing Marinette so relaxed, and was glad the holidays helped her loosen up a bit. She always seemed quite stressed when they interacted at school, probably because of the amount of work they had. It checked out: Chat generally visited her at the weekend, when she had a little more time on her hands to unwind.

Marinette was happy to be with Chat Noir. She felt comfortable sitting close to him on the roof. The fact it was _Adrien_ ’s roof had quickly slipped her mind as he told her all about his adventures with Ladybug. She liked hearing him talk, he seemed so passionate and happy. Which wasn’t always the case when Ladybug met up with him.

The pair had shifted closer as the evening went by, to the point where they sat next to each other, facing the Eiffel Tower when the fireworks started. The sudden crackling, slightly deafening in contrast with the peaceful bird chirping and laughs that came from the nearby Champs de Mars, made Marinette jump and laugh in surprise, her shoulder now touching Chat’s arm due to their height difference. She instinctively leaned her head on his shoulder, marvelling at the light show. Chat’s arm automatically wrapped around her waist, as his head tilted to rest on top of hers.

“Do you know why the sound is delayed?” He whispered in her ear, bright colours erupting in the night sky before their associated ‘boom’ could be heard.

“No?” She answered, turning slightly towards him. His warm breath near her ear had sent butterflies flying in her stomach. _Fireworks_ , she corrected herself, the innocent image of butterflies forever tarnished by Hawkmoth in her mind. 

“It’s because light travels faster than sound. So by the time sound reaches us, more lights have have had time to make it in the sky.” Said lights reflected very handsomely in his masked eyes.

“Interesting.” She smiled. _Like the fact your lips look very kissable right now_. She mentally shook her head at the thought. “You know, I never pegged you as a scientist, Kitty.”

“Physics is actually my favourite subject.” He smiled. 

“I guess there’s a lot I still don’t know about you.”

Their faces had inched closer as they spoke, not only because of the ambient noise.

“You know, I’d really love for you to know more about me.” Chat whispered, his lips mere centimetres from hers, taunting her. 

She gave in. 

It wasn’t much. Just a brush of their lips, really. But it caught both of them by surprise. Marinette felt frozen as she pulled away, her heart rate having risen far beyond what she thought was possible. She avoided his gaze, her cheeks burning. 

“I- I’m sorry, I don’t-”

Chat’s lips suddenly on hers interrupted her mid-sentence. His kiss was gentle, yet deep, tentative, yet just right. His hands, which had tilted her head up tenderly at first, now cupped her face, his gloves much softer than she would have expected against her skin. One of Marinette’s hands tangled in his hair at the nape of his neck, the other rested against his torso. She was glad to feel she wasn’t the only one whose heart had gone haywire. She smiled as his chest vibrated in a purr, momentarily masking his heart rate.

The fireworks around them were nothing compared to that inside of them. In fact, they didn’t even notice when the former stopped, too lost in their own bubble, on a Parisian roof on a hot Summer evening.


	17. Day 23 - Blush

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette and Chat Noir investigate the Miraculous suit.

Chat Noir had done it again. He’d cornered Marinette into a situation where the two foreseeable outcomes were either she revealing that she was Ladybug, or her spending some time being way closer to him, physically speaking, than she liked. Not in an uncomfortable or disrespectful way, of course; it _was_ Chat Noir we are talking about here, one of the people she knew who were the most mindful of boundaries. No, the complaint, although Marinette would never admit it to herself, was purely for show. Poor her, having to investigate Chat’s particularly developed biceps - a designer’s life is _such_ a hard one.

For it was indeed in the name of fashion that the whole scene had played out. Marinette had been thinking out loud, lying down on the floor of her room with her head on Chat’s abdomen as he absentmindedly played with one of her pigtails. It was a pretty common position to be in when hanging out with friends, really.

“I’m just so confused about the Miraculous costumes, you know? I can’t really tell what kind of fabric it is, and is it sort of superglued to the body when you wear it?...”

She exaggerated how little she knew about the suits, although she had spent another hour standing in front of a mirror the previous night, trying to investigate the matter herself. But no matter how many times she spun around, reaching for the material in an attempt to stretch it (it was tight, but actually quite elastic - definitely not superglued to her), she couldn’t find as much as a seam to help her satisfy her curiosity.

Chat’s suit, on the other hand, _seamed_ a lot more composite. Marinette mentally slapped herself at the bad pun. It had gloves, boots, pockets and, most importantly, a zipper. She wasn’t sure it worked, having never needed a bell or the top of Chat’s suit for her Lucky Charm, but even if it was purely decorative, there were easy ways of getting to the edge of the fabric to take a look.

“I’ll be your lab cat if you’d like. In exchange for the information, of course.” Chat Noir said, happy to find someone who could possibly answer his own questions about the suit. He might have been a designer’s son, but his abilities were limited to sewing in an almost straight line. He didn’t dare touch the suit.

“Really?” Marinette sat up, turning towards him. She had the most hopeful expression on her face, which Chat could definitely not resist. He, on the other hand, bore a curious expression which betrayed his lack of understanding of the suit. Marinette was tempted to show him her findings, having tested the effect of a bunch of variables on hers, which couldn’t be that different. She knew she couldn’t, though. And it was too late now to back out of his proposition.

Chat Noir propped himself in an upright position, spreading his arms in the air to signify his willingness to participate in the investigation project. Marinette’s hands hovered around them, not sure where to start. The glinting bell at his neck caught her attention.

“Can I?...” She trailed, pointing towards it. After all, it was the element that could potentially tell her the most about the outfit.

“Go for it!” He shrugged.

Marinette carefully tugged at the zipper, wanting to open it just slightly. It must’ve had a mind of its own, or just be very sensitive, because the bell made it down to the very bottom with a cristalline sound, just above Chat’s belt, revealing the boy’s perfectly chiselled abs. She gaped at the sight, obviously knowing Chat must have been muscular from their stunts together, but being taken aback at just _how much_. She had half a mind to touch, but yanked her hand away when she fully comprehended what it was doing.

Chat’s mouth was also wide open as he looked down at his bare abdomen; he’d had one - _ONE_ \- thought about Marinette’s hands running on his stomach, petting him like the cat he was. Surely this was a coincidence, but still. They both looked up at the same time, his bright green eyes staring right into the sea of her gaze, and both looked away rapidly, turning crimson in the process.

“Fascinating.” Marinette commented curtly, trying to keep her eyes off Chat’s body as she quickly took a look at the fabric around the zipper. She could lift it off his skin, and it looked like he could actually take the whole top off if he wanted to. She didn’t understand what was the point of that, but maybe showing off Chat’s perfect body could throw Akumatised people off?

She cleared her throat as she tried to pull the zipper back up. For something that had opened so easily, and was carried on fabric that was a lot more elastic than it looked, the process was a lot more laborious than she’d anticipated. She and Chat had to work together, Chat holding the edges together as she carefully brought the zip back up to its original position.

She busied herself by looking at his mask, knowing fully well he’d close his eyes as she did so. She was also actually interested in knowing what made them look so much like cat eyes, the magic of the transformation, or something with a scientific explanation. She noticed Chat was still slightly red from before, but brushing her fingers against his cheek left some pink powder on them.

“Chat... Are you wearing blush?”

“Pfft, me, wearing make-up? Who do you think I am, Adrien Agreste?” He scoffed, letting out an awkward laugh.

Marinette looked at him with a blank expression. Chat? Adrien? The same person? Her shoulders started shaking at the thought, and she soon exploded in laughter. As if _she_ wouldn’t have noticed if they were.

Watching his friend wheeze on the floor, a couple of tears streaming down her face as she laughed, Chadrien didn’t know whether to laugh with her or be offended. He finally opted for a discreet sigh of relief, happy to be off the hook for this once. 

He’d really have to start taking his makeup off when he came to see her after photo shoots, though.


	18. Day 24 - Confession

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chat Noir corners Marinette into going on a double date with him, Adrien Agreste and Ladybug.

“Purr-incess? I might have to confess something.”

“What have you done this time?” Marinette sighed, barely looking up from her newspaper. She was reading the fashion pages, regularly bookmarking pictures from the Paris Autumn Fashion Week report. She wasn’t so much interested in the stars as she was in the trends that were emerging, although there were a couple of good shots of Adrien Agreste that would definitely be making it onto her picture-board.

Had Marinette been focusing on Chat Noir instead, she would have noticed how fidgety he was, a lot more hyper than usual. He paced around her room, biting his claws in a nervous habit. Ever since he’d found out Ladybug was, in fact, Marinette, he’d done his best to conceal his own identity, while secretly trying to get her attention, but not knowing how to. He hadn’t _meant_ to follow Ladybug Home. In fact, he hadn’t realised he was until he had gotten close enough to Marinette’s flat. He’d been blinded by a familiar red flash just as he prepared to jump onto her balcony, and seen his friend casually walk out from behind the chimney, fishing in her bag to get a macaron out for the red being that floated next to her. 

Chat had been meaning to visit Marinette that particular night to welcome her back after her holiday. Which, now that he thought about it, matched Ladybug’s own time off. He thought about all the times he’d missed the connections. How Marinette had never been akumatised. How fast Ladybug appeared when the attacks happened at school, how well she seemed to know the targets. How the only time he’d seen both Marinette and Ladybug together, Trixx had conveniently been amongst the kidnapped Kwamis. How similar Ladybug and the illusory Marinette had looked, down to the hairstyle. For somebody whose main line of business was looks, he certainly had been _very_ blind. 

Chat had almost collided with a wall as he ran back to his room, laughing about his discovery and the irony of him calling Marinette an everyday Ladybug. Knowing his Lady, she probably had been panicking inside at the thought of being unmasked. Yet it made so much sense that the most caring, mindful and genuinely kind person he knew was the person behind the mask. How had it escaped him for so long?

He’d spent the rest of the Summer pondering what to do with the information. Should he come clean to Marinette? At least about him knowing? She was the guardian after all, surely it was only a matter of time before she ended up knowing about his identity anyway.

When school started again, still unsure about what to do, Adrien had probed Alya and Nino to figure out if they also knew. Alya being hot on LB’s tracks all the time, surely she must have been aware that her favourite superhero was her best friend. After talking with her, he concluded that either she didn’t know, or she played her cards reaaaally close to her chest. She’d let something slip about Marinette liking him, though, which, once he’d calmed the butterflies in his stomach - _the girl of his dreams liked him back_ -, had lead him to spend a lot of time trying to get closer to her. He thought it would be perfect; he’d know the truth, but she didn’t have to.

Except that to everyone’s disbelief, Marinette had gently rejected Adrien’s date invitations. Once. Twice. Three times. Alya could not fathom what was going on in her best friend’s head, and she wouldn’t tell her. She just said she had a secret crush, but that she couldn’t say anything more. Adrien’s heart ached a bit, but guessed that after all the time he’d made her suffer by calling her a “good friend”, it was normal that she had moved on. He might have been slightly jealous, but he had respectfully backed away. 

Until tonight. Chat Noir had been visiting Marinette (just because she wouldn’t date him didn’t mean he didn’t want to hang out with his friend), and she’d left him for a bit to get some croissants from the bakery. Left unsupervised, Chat had skimmed through her latest sketches, her talent never failing to impress him. And that’s when he’d seen her diary, open wide. It had been pushed back behind her computer monitor, probably when he’d arrived. He really hadn’t meant to pry, but as his gaze landed on the page, he saw his name. Chat Noir. 

His curiosity getting the better of him, he had read the diary entry, his cheeks warming as he read her silent confession that she liked him. She seemed a little conflicted about her feelings, but his bad puns were the main thing she held against him. It was all he could do not to waltz with her when she came up the stairs. 

Marinette mistook his delight for over excitement at the thought of eating pastries, which she faced every time she gave Chat anything to eat. She refrained from worrying about his eating habits, given that he’d admitted to being a high level, part time sportsman (he wouldn’t say which sport, but the fact that his right arm muscles were a bit more developed than his left had made her assume it was tennis). His enthusiasm had made her smile, but she hadn’t paid much attention to it as she opened the magazine Chat had brought her.

“I might have agreed to us going on a double date? Adrien Agreste asked if I could organise a dinner with Ladybug, and well, I didn’t want to be the third wheel so I said we’d both go...” Chat was making it up as he went. This could be a solution to his conundrum. An opportunity to tell her who he was, that he knew, and (he could dream) to make out with her on the Paris rooftops.

“You _what_?” The magazine fell flat on her lap as all colour drained from her face. 

“I’m so sorry, I know I should have asked first, but he has a photo shoot opportunity for us and wanted to meet her in another context first... And Ladybug said yes.” He looked straight into her eyes as he iterated the last sentence, daring her to contradict him.

Marinette gaped at the audacity. The blatant _lie_. It hit her that there was nothing she could do, nothing she could say except accept the proposition. The way Chat looked at her told her he at least suspected there was a link between her and Ladybug. She couldn’t call him out on Ladybug’s supposed agreement to go. Outright refusing the dinner invitation would be fishy. 

She took a deep breath before replying. “Okay, fine, then.” She could always make up an excuse closer to the date.

Her answer took Chat by surprise, but he did his best to hide it. He promised he’d be in touch as he left, and pressed a longing kiss on Marinette’s forehead, drawing a bright shade of crimson to her cheeks as he did so. 

\---

Ladybug swung from chimney to chimney on her way to the rooftop. She’d decided it would be Marinette bailing tonight. How could she explain getting there otherwise? And after all, it was Ladybug whom Adrien wanted to see. 

She landed at the meeting point, expecting to find the two boys she’d ever had feelings for. Instead, only one was present.

“Good evening, Adrien.” She smiled. Her romantic feelings for him had melted as her relationship with Chat bloomed. Adrien’s recent interest in her had further confused her, but she was certain now that her heart belonged to a certain leather-clad cat. “Has Chat not made it yet?”

“Actually, he has.” He gave her an oddly familiar smile, one she wasn’t used to seeing on him.

“Oh?” She asked, discreetly looking around. She noticed the candle-lit table in the center of the rooftop, a single rose laid on one of the two plates. Ladybug stared at him blankly, her brain taking a minute to register the information. “Is he not staying for dinner, then?”

“Just as much as Marinette will.”

“Do you mean...”

“Plagg, claws out.” Adrien called out, holding his hand out. A black blur cycloned towards his simple, silver ring, and in a green flash, the model was replaced by her partner.

Her face was tense from trying very hard not to gape. Her jaw would probably have hit the floor otherwise. 

“You knew.” She managed to articulate.

“I did.”

“Tikki, spots off.” She felt more comfortable speaking as herself. Which she knew was stupid. She was Ladybug. And Adrien was Chat Noir. “I can’t believe you managed to make me fall for you _twice_.” She knew there were more pressing matters. They were out in the open, they’d both transformed. They now both knew who the other was. But for once she let her heart speak for her first.

“In my defense, you claw-ly have a type.” He chuckled. They were facing each other now, close enough for his hand to come and cup her face, his thumb gently stroking her cheek.

“As if you don’t!” She snorted, her eyes lost in his green ones. They reflected the flickering candles in a warm way, making her feel at Home. 

“Never said I didn’t.” He kissed her lightly on the forehead. On her nose. On her cheek. “You know, I lied the other day when I said I had to confess something.” He whispered as he continued trailing kisses on her face, behind her ears, just below her jaw.

“Oh yeah?” She sighed, savouring the moment.

“My actual confession is, I love you, my Ladynette.” He smiled tenderly as he drowned into the sapphire of her eyes.

“And I love you, my Chadrien.” 

Their lips found each other like two butterflies as they stood in their own bubble, the Eiffel Tower erupting in lights behind them as the clock struck the hour.


	19. Days 25 & 26 - Blep and Toe Beans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Marinette and Chat Noir adopt some kittens, and Marinette realises Chat is a lot more like a cat than she realised.

Marinette was feeling morose. She couldn’t quite say why, but something told her the last akumatisation had something to do with it. She had no memory of it, apart from another Ladybug coming in, erasing what she’d been writing on her gift for Adrien and the next thing she knew she was standing on the steps of the Trocadéro, empty-handed and an awfully bad feeling in her gut. She had put on a brave face, tried to pretend everything was alright, but there was a constant nagging, at the back of her head, accompagnied with flashes of bright white and icy blue, which distracted her a lot.

Chat and Adrien both noticed her change of mood in their interactions with her. Her classmate had thought, at first, that the characteristic slower pace of the ending school year could explain her lack of focus. But the lighthearted, funny, sunny girl he was used to hanging out with as Chat had also disappeared. She was almost apathetic at Home, her latest projects half-abandoned in various places in her room, but there was a restlessness, an anxious edge to her as well, that was seemingly soothed by Chat’s presence. He noticed that lying next to her, she would fall asleep easily, despite her comments on her current insomnia.

Marinette wanted to talk to Chat about how she was feeling. She _really_ did. He was the only person who could probably understand. If she had been affected by previous events, surely he must have been too? She had tried to broach the subject with him, but she didn’t know how to go through with the conversation without saying something she shouldn’t. The fact she struggled with expressing her feelings didn’t worry Chat as much as the panic in her eyes when she talked about them did. He couldn’t think of a way to help her in the long run. He thought being there for her, while giving her emotional space, to let her process her feelings was probably the best he could do. He’d be damned if he’d leave her alone with her thoughts, and if he wouldn’t help her get a break from them sometimes, though.

Hence the kittens in Marinette’s room. Three babies Adrien hadn’t been able to resist as he walked by a pet store in the school vicinity. He’d immediately thought about Marinette as he saw them, how sure he was they would make her feel better. He’d found an alley to transform as he walked out and had gone straight to her place, mindful of the beings in the box he was carrying. He’d barely been able to contain his excitement as she let him in, her curiosity piqued by the container he was holding.

“Purr-incess, you’re going to love this!” He had opened the lid very slowly, as if performing a magic trick. She had gasped at the site of the baby cats, one of which was asleep.

“Chat they’re so cute!!” She squealed as she delicately picked one of the awake cats, an orange tabby one, which meowed gently at her touch. 

Chat mirrored her, cradling his own grey kitten and scratching its belly. “I _meow_ , right?” He grinned as he felt the baby’s tiny claws on his glove.

“They’re so tiny! Look at the little toe beans!” She cooed in response to the meowing. 

“Hey, how come you never compliment _my_ toe beans?” Chat asked, slightly offended. 

“You have toe beans?” His goal to distract her and amuse her was going very well, he noted.

“Purr-haps you should check for yourself.” Chat carefully set down the kitten he’d been holding out of the way before rolling onto his back and lifting his legs up so Marinette could see his feet. 

“Oh my goodness, you actually do!” She gently placed the tabby in the box, and focused on the bright green squishy pads on her partner’s soles, an almost awe-struck expression on her face. She reached out to touch them.

“Whoa, there, Purr-incess, what do you think you’re doing?” Chat recoiled at her approaching hands.

“I want to touch them!” Her pout turned into an devilish grin as she slowly crawled closer to him. “Kitty, don’t tell me you’re... ticklish?”

“Me? Meow way!” He scoffed, although instinctively inching backwards as Marinette approached.

“Why don’t you stay still for a moment then, so I can test that theory?” 

She got close enough to graze his foot, triggering a kicking instinct in him that she barely dodged, her usual escape reflexes impeded by the fact she was laughing.

The cristalline sound Chat hadn’t heard in a while filled the room, Marinette rolling on the ground, clutching her stomach as she gave in to the merriment. It felt so good to laugh. She couldn’t remember the last time she had. Chat wiggled on the floor in delight, feeling satisfied. This was all his doing. What a _great_ friend he was. He blepped unconsciously, closing his eyes as he basked in her laugh. It faltered a little as the girl tried to catch her breath, but the combined sight of Chat and the blepping kitten next to him sent her in another fit of giggles, complete with tears streaming down her face.

“Chat... I’d never noticed... how much... of a cat... you are!” She managed to fit between intakes of breath, fishing for her phone to take a picture.

Chat cocked an eyebrow as he opened an eye. “Being a cat is literally the job description, Purr-incess.”

Marinette managed to control her laughter enough to resume a normal conversation, although her shoulders still shook occasionally. “I know, but it just hit me! I knew about the purring, but you blep, too!!” She all but shoved the picture she’d taken in his face, her laughter erupting again. Adrien would have to move over. That photo was making it on her wall, next to her bed so she could wake up to it every morning.

“Maybe one day I’ll let you see my reaction to cucumbers.” He winked, turning to the kitten at his side which had started meowing.

“No wayyyyy.” She grinned.

Noise emerging from the box caught her attention. The third kitten was now awake, its green eyes contrasting with the black of its fur. 

“Look, this one looks just like you!” She gasped as she lifted it out of the box. She stroked it lightly. The cat purred under her fingers, and attempted to lick them. “Aren’t _you_ the cutest little kitty?” She cooed as she played with it, dodging its claws.

Chat felt a pang of jealousy, which he knew was completely uncalled for. How could he be jealous of a _cat_. He smiled at the sight of happy Marinette. He’d really missed her. He hoped she would get better soon. 

“Do you want to keep it?” He blurted. He knew a pet could not replace a therapist, or someone to talk to in general, but it could be some well-needed emotional support.

“Really? Could I?” She looked up, and there was such joy in her eyes he wouldn’t have been able to refuse her even if he’d wanted to.

“Of course! If your parents are okay with it, of course, I wouldn’t want you to get into trouble...” He thought of his own situation. He probably would get into trouble himself if his father found out he was harbouring two cats behind his back. Then again, he had managed to hide Plagg, and he was high maintenance. He was actually surprised no one in his household questioned the amount of expensive cheese he insisted on keeping in his room. His room was probably big enough to hide animals as well, but purr-haps leaving one here would be safer.

“I’m sure they’ll be fine with it, Papa’s been talking about getting a cat for a while. He says it’s to prevent mice from invading the bakery, but I think secretly he’s just soft for them.” She said in a hushed tone. “I’m sure you’ll be very happy here, Kitten Noir.” She added for the cat, lifting it up to eye level.

“Kitten Noir? Fur real?” Chat asked, his heart fluttering in his chest. She was naming the cat after _him_.

“It’s very fitting, don’t you think?” She shone a bright smile his way. “He can be our baby.” She reached for his hand and squeezed it. 

Chat’s heart rate was off the charts at the sign of affection and the insinuation that they could be parents together. Holy Camembert, how much he would like that. Reluctantly, he let go of her hand, gathering his remaining kittens in an attempt to conceal his fiery cheeks.

“Well then, I guess I’ll have to come around more often to make sure he gets a paw-per upbringing. I don’t trust you to teach him puns.” Chat said, straightening up and trying to act casual.

“I would really like that, Kitty.” Marinette said softly, almost shyly, as she got up as well. 

They walked up to her balcony. Chat didn’t particularly want to go, but the orange sky told him he should be on his way. _Time sure does fly when you’re having fun_ , he thought, calculating that they must have spent at least a couple of hours playing around. Marinette tugged at his free arm before he left.

“Thank you, Kitty. For everything.” She stood on her tiptoes and planted a kiss on his cheek. Chat refrained himself from bringing his fingers to the spot.

“Anytime, Purr-incess.” He smiled, a warm feeling spreading inside of him. “You can always count on me, Mrs. Noir.”

She smiled fondly at him and waved as he leapt off the roof. She clung to the inner fuzziness Chat jokingly calling her his wife had created. She didn’t know how long it would last, but she enjoyed feeling herself again. She skipped back down to her room, humming. She picked up Kitten Noir and stroked him absentmindedly, waiting to hear her parents to go downstairs. One thought filled her head as she waited. She couldn’t wait to see her Chaton again.


	20. Day 27 - Kitten Noir

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More Kitten Noir shenanigans (sequel to the previous chapter!)

Marinette stealthily creeped up behind Chat Noir, too busy playing with a kitten to notice her. _So much for incredible cat senses_ , she smirked as she squatted behind him. She had to say, being Multimouse did add to her discretion. There was a reason “quiet as a mouse” was an expression after all. She gauged the distance from the edge of the roof; there was very little chance that any of her two favourite cats would fall off, but she calculated that she would probably be able to catch them with her skipping rope if it were to happen. 

“Guess who?” She singsonged, placing her hands over Chat’s eyes. As she expected he almost did jump out of his skin, but stayed within reasonable distance from the chasm. Kitten Noir simply meowed.

“L-Ladybug?” Chat asked tentatively.

“Not quite.” Marinette’s heart rate picked up. Maybe this hadn’t been a good idea after all. She carefully uncovered his eyes and stepped back, giving him space to turn around.

“Purr-incess!” He gasped as he embraced her in a warm hug. Her arms wrapped around his back, reciprocating. She smiled contently, her head resting against his heart. “Look at you, back in the team! What did you do to convince Ladybug to let you be Multimouse again?” He made her twirl around, admiring the superhero he’d only caught a glimpse of once in costume. _Not that she needed to wear one to be an everyday superhero_ , he thought fondly. He appreciated the design, simple yet elegant, the originality of her hair updo mirroring mouse ears. He wouldn’t have expected anything less from her.

“I bribed her with some Kitten Noir time.” Marinette winked, amused by Chat’s awestruck expression. “Also she didn’t trust you with juggling patrol _and_ a baby cat.” 

That last part partly true. When Chat had swung by to ask Marinette if he could babysit their “son”, despite it being his turn to be on the lookout, she’d decided he would need supervision. Given the fact he’d been so focused on the kitten to hear, or even just _sense_ her arrival, she thought she had made the right decision. Which might also have been an excuse to spend time with her boys, especially the one who didn’t live with her.

It had been weeks since Kitten Noir had become a part of her life, and Marinette had loved every second of it. Her parents had taken the “stray” in easily enough, although they had been slightly sceptical about her explanation as to how she had found herself with a cat which was apparently fully vaccinated, already had a microchip despite its young age and did not belong to anyone - was it really that unbelievable that he’d just been sitting there, on her balcony, when she’d returned from school? After secretly investigating the matter and finding out the cat had been adopted by a certain Agreste boy for one of his friends (the pet shop owner had been happy to provide the information in exchange for the famous TS bakery macarons), her parents had dropped the subject, nodding knowingly at each other when Marinette told the adoption story to visitors. They were glad to see their daughter back on her feet.

“I can’t believe she said that _behind my back_!” Chat said with a mock offended tone. Marinette smirked ironically. “But I _am_ glad you came, this can be our first family outing! Kitten Noir is going to love visiting Paris, aren’t you, Kitty?” He cooed, holding the cat up to his face. 

“Is that what you’re supposed to do on patrol?” Marinette asked angelically. 

“Absolutely paw-sitive.” Chat put on his best model smile, hoping it would divert her from his blatant lie. He hoped Ladybug had just told Multimouse to follow his lead. 

“Alright, let’s go then!” 

Marinette realised Chat Noir was the most doting father she’d ever seen. He’d bought a baby carrier for the kitten, for heaven’s sake. She tried not to laugh at Kitten Noir’s bobbing head as they ran on the rooftops towards their first destination: the Opéra Garnier. 

“Funny, I didn’t peg you as being one for nights at the Opera, Kitty.” Marinette said pensively as they walked around the slanted roof. 

“Excuse you, Purr-incess, I happen to be a man of culture.” He scoffed. “Purr-haps someday I could actually take you here to see something.”

Marinette pictured herself in a long evening gown, with a sophisticated updo, fancy jewellery and long, white gloves. She imagined herself walking down the elegant staircase at the end of the night, just like in _Funny Face_ , her arm linked with Chat Noir’s. Her mind wandered to Chat Noir in a tuxedo. _That_ must be a sight for sore eyes. Catching herself before she could delve too far into the admiration of her partner’s physical appearance, she blushed slightly and cleared her throat. Even if they _did_ end up going on a date at the Opera, people didn’t dress up so much anymore. It wouldn’t stop her from sketching ideas when she came back home, though.

“I think I’d like that very much.” She said softly, turning away slightly so as to face the Avenue de l’Opéra. It was still quite busy at this time of the evening, but dusk seemed to be chasing people away, trafic being a lot less dense than in the middle of the day. She could see the Louvre from where she was standing, standing between them and the River Seine.

“I sup-paw-se it’s a date then.” Chat Noir came to stand next to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. Marinette rested her head on his shoulder as they looked onto the view. “Isn’t Paris the most beautiful city you’ve ever seen?” He marvelled in an almost whisper, his eyes darting lovingly towards her.

Before she slipped and said he made it better -what was she thinking, she usually blurted these kinds of things when she was with Adrien, not Chat-, Kitten Noir let out a small meow. She laughed lightly, but she felt her partner stiffen next to her. 

“Did you hear that?” He asked, letting go of her to get a better look at the cat.

“You mean Kitten’s meowing? He does that pretty often, you know.” She smirked, although slightly disappointed by the fact Chat had moved away. 

“But did you hear what he _said_?” Chat’s eyes were as wide as saucers, entirely focused on the little being in front of him. Had he imagined it? Could he be developing an understanding of cats? It had never happened before, but he was certain that the kitten’s meow could be translated by “hey, you two should kiss”. Had his subconscious played a trick on him? 

“Wait, you can understand him? What did he say?” She jabbed him in the arm, curious about his potential new power. 

Chat Noir paused. Should he tell her the truth? He did want to see her reaction; they’d grown closer, especially since he’d gifted her Kitten Noir, but as far as he knew she liked someone else. Had things changed? He knew for one that his feelings for Marinette had strengthened to the point where, in the off chance Ladybug would declare herself for him, he’d have to think about it before dating her. Something that would have been inconcevable even a month before.

“ _Maman_.” He blurted, chickening out. He wasn’t sure now would be a good time for feelings. “He said _Maman_. Crazy, right?” 

“To be honest, Cha- Kitty,” she caught herself before calling him by his Ladybug nickname, “he is a baby. I guess cats and humans aren’t that different!” She laughed.

Chat joined her, although his thoughts were elsewhere. Could it be he had a chance with the Mouse standing next to him? If the cat who lived with her thought so, maybe he should look into it. He most definitely didn’t want to lose her friendship, but earning her love was the best thing he could imagine.


	21. Day 28 - Black out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chat Noir/Adrien “she’s just a friend” Agreste does what _all_ good friends do when there’s a black out; bring them food.

Black outs hardly happen in Paris; “the City of Lights” wouldn’t be a fitting epithet if they did, after all. Ever since the rise of Hawkmoth, though, they had become more frequent, even if just for an hour tops, the Akumatised seemingly being fond of throwing large objects into electricity generators. 

It had therefore taken Marinette by surprise when the power had gone off in her neighbourhood, on a crisp November night. She hadn’t actually noticed at first. She had come home from the Collège Françoise Dupont and crashed on her bed, exhausted from a busy week at school. Her parents were absent, on a trip to a baking convention, so she gave herself some time to hang around, scrolling on her Instagram. After a full day of Brevet Blancs, the least she could do was relax. She gushed to Alya about Adrien’s newest pictures via text message while Tikki got the live commentary, making sure to save the ones she would ceremoniously be putting up on her board. It was a hard task - _how could someone look so good all the time?_ \- which was only interrupted by the signal that her battery was getting low. She groaned and rolled over to plug her phone in, but noticed the charger did nothing to rectify the situation.

Confused, the young girl tested several power outlets in her room before trying to turn on the lights. Nothing happened. 

“ _Mince, alors._ ” She swore lightly, taking the few steps that separated her from her window. She peeked outside, looking out for any commotion that would betray another attack. 

She could see lights across the Seine, and the Eiffel Tower was sparkling, sign that it wasn’t a city-wide problem, but the streets near hers were pitch black. One of her neighbours waved after seeing her, and shouted there had been a small fire in a nearby shop, with a potential gas leak, which was why the firemen had deemed fit to turn the power off for the block; it was supposed to be restored later in the evening when all necessary checks had been carried out. Marinette thanked him and went looking for candles in the mean time.

“Do you think Ladybug should go and help them?” She asked Tikki as she searched through drawers for matches.

“Unfortunately there isn’t much you could do.” The Kwami replied, floating up next to her, eating a macaron. “I’m afraid a Lucky Charm would not help in this situation.” 

Marinette made a face, thinking about her dinner. She was doubtful she’d be able to eat anything warm tonight. She entrusted the candles to Tikki and rummaged inside her fridge, grabbing some cheese and fruit from it. She took the remains of a baguette on the counter and some cutlery before making her way back upstairs. 

She set up for the evening, lighting candles around her room to allow her to see. She found some battery-powered ones buried in her Christmas decoration trunk and settled with a blanket and a book on her chaise. She was in the middle of a tense scene when there was a thud on her roof. Paralysed, feeling as if her heart could rip out of her rib cage at any moment, she let her book drop as her skylight slowly opened. She scrambled for the knife she’d brought up with her and stood up in what she hoped was a good attacking stance. 

A familiar dark figure dropped on her bed, holding what looked like a picnic basket.

“‘Evening Purr-incess, did so-meow-ne order room service?” Chat’s eyes glinted in the candlelight as he slid down her ramp. 

Marinette’s arm dropped to her side. She was torn between yelling at him for scaring her half to death and hugging him for not being a burglar. And also (maybe) because he was _him_. “Hey Kitty, think you could give me a bit of a heads up before barging in like this?” She ended up saying, with just a hint of reproach in her voice.

“Sorry if I startled you.” He said sheepishly, scratching the back of his head. “I came as soon as I heard about the black out. Will you forgive me in exchange of food?”

Adrien himself hadn’t been affected, despite living just a couple of streets away. The Agreste Mansion was very well equipped to deal with situations like this one. Had Nino not been suddenly logged off from their UMS game, he probably wouldn’t have known about the situation at all. His first thought had been for Marinette, whom he knew was spending the weekend alone. Showing up at her door as his civilian self with provisions was not an option -how would he explain his father letting him go outside in the middle of a power cut, when he wasn’t usually allowed out any other time?-, but for all she knew Chat lived on the other side of town.

“That’s really nice of you, thank you Chat.” Marinette smiled and decided he deserved a kiss on the cheek for his efforts. “What made you think I needed company?”

Chat froze slightly. He hadn’t come over in a while, too busy studying for their exams. He technically wasn’t supposed to know she would be alone as her parents had only remembered the convention in the middle of the week. “Er… Adrien told me you might need stuff? He called me earlier.” That was a believable lie.

“Adrien talks about me?” Marinette’s heart fluttered in her chest. She resisted the urge to swoon, but couldn’t fight the blush creeping up her cheeks.

“Well, yes, I mean you’re his good friend, and good friends worry about each other in blackouts, don’t they?…” Chat trailed, a little puzzled by her reaction. Of course he would talk about her. She was the person he valued most beside Ladybug. And his oddly composed family, he supposed.

Whether Marinette chose to ignore him or whether she simply didn’t hear him, too busy internally jumping up and squealing at the information, he didn’t know, but she didn’t reply. He was happy to see her with such a wide smile. Marinette’s happiness was one of the prettiest things he’d ever seen, and he worked in the fashion industry, so that was saying something.

Chat cleared his throat. “Anyway, is there anything you need help with? In the bakery purr-haps?”

Marinette snapped back to reality. “Oh. Yes, I guess, I need to check the fridge downstairs is working, just in case. Do you have to go?”

“For you, I have all the time in the world.” That was another thing friends could tell each other, right?

“Okay, let’s head downstairs then. Do you need a flashlight?” She climbed to her bed to get hers, a relic from when she used to secretly read past her bedtime.

“I’ve got my night-vision goggles on, don’t you worry.” He winked, tapping gently on his mask.

They made their way down to the bakery’s storage room, at the back of the building. Marinette lead the way, expertly dodging bags of flour as she weaved her way towards the fridge. Chat trailed behind, marvelling at the many supplies that surrounded them. Sweet smells tickled his nostrils, chocolate, vanilla, raspberry, rose and passion fruit in between others, an original combination he very much enjoyed. Too busy basking in the quaint atmosphere of the bakery, he tripped on a box and brought down a packet of rice flour and a couple pans in his fall. The commotion gave Marinette a jump scare; she had been checking the temperature of the fridge, which seemed to be stable, with her back to him. She turned around, shining a light directly at Chat, lying on the floor covered in white powder, grinning guiltily.

“Sorry?” He said as he got up, trying to dust the flour off. His hair was completely white.

“Let me help you.” Marinette strode up to him with a giggle at his unusual appearance and mussed up his hair, standing on her tiptoes. The flour fell like snow over both of their faces. She smirked as she heard him purr in response. “For an animal that’s supposed to be discreet, you’re hardly light on your feet tonight.” He stuck his tongue out in response. Standing so close to her, their faces bare inches apart seemed to freeze his thoughts for the benefit of accelerating his heart beat.

Satisfied everything was in order, and the bakery was locked and secure, the pair went back upstairs, grabbing a box of macarons as they did, Chat admitting he’d omitted to bring dessert. They settled on the floor in Marinette’s room, laying down the picnic. Marinette was impressed by the amount of food there was.

“I wasn’t sure what you’d want to eat, so I just took what I found.” Chat shrugged. Namely, sushi, quiche, ratatouille and beef Wellington.

“You’re really the best, you know that?” She smiled in reply, her head tilting to the side as she looked at him fondly. _What would she do without her Chaton_?

“Purr-etty sure that would actually be you.” He held her hand absentmindedly. 

They joked around as they ate, both enjoying the company. It had been a while since Adrien had had dinner with anyone. He appreciated Marinette’s humour, and her interest in him, while still being respectful of the mask and the secrecy that went with it. Marinette was glad to have Chat with her tonight. He made the black out more cheerful.

They ended up curled up in her chaise after dinner, Chat reading her book out loud thanks to his night vision. The traditional candles had burnt out, decreasing the light source in the room. His voice, so familiar and smooth, lulled Marinette to sleep. She snuggled against him as he spoke, embracing the warmth of his body. Chat stopped reading and looked at her affectionately, reluctant to disturb her in her slumber. He moved delicately from under her and picked her up, bridal style. He carried her to her bed and tucked her in. He nipped back down to get a piece of baguette and cheese for Plagg (the Kwami would never forgive him if he didn’t get him anything), and a battery-powered candle to leave beside her bed, in case she needed it when she woke up.

Marinette stirred as he opened her skylight, muttering something along the lines of Lucky Charm. Chat found it odd, but didn’t question it. 

“You’re _my_ Lucky Charm, you know that Purr-incess?” He whispered as he carefully tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and kissed her on the forehead before leaving.

Marinette woke up the next morning in the best of moods. The power was back on, and she’d had the most wonderful dream of Adrien calling her his Lucky Charm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Translations:**  
>  _Mince, alors_ : Damn it/shoot


	22. Day 29 - Pyjamas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette and Chat Noir share embarrassing stories with their crushes.

“I’m sorry Chat, but I doubt you can top _my_ embarrassing story with A- ah, the boy I like.” Marinette giggled.

Chat Noir and Marinette walked on the riverbanks, sharing an ice cream. Platonically, of course. The pair had levelled up to strolling around Paris together at the weekend with the arrival of May and warmer weather; they talked about everything and nothing, glad to share their thoughts with somebody else. Not that Alya or Nino weren’t a suitable audience for them, they just really enjoyed the other’s take on things, especially when it came to feelings. 

What had started as a rant about how their love lives were doomed due to the curse of unrequited love had quickly evolved into an escalation of who had the most cringy story with their crush. 

“Try me.” Chat smirked, already lining up his ammunition.

“I was supposed to go swimming with friends one day, got sidetracked and ended up running into my crush in my pyjamas.” She grimaced at the memory. “And before you say anything, that’s not the worst part, because had I just said hi and ran away, I might have been able to get away with it, but I helped him and ended up spending most of the afternoon with him, wearing a towel turban and swimming goggles.”

She didn’t mention the part where they’d hidden in a fountain to escape from his fans, nor the part where her lie about not having seen Adrien’s new advertisement had caught up with her before the movie.

Chat chuckled, picturing her very well. So it wasn’t just with him that she got up to these sorts of tricks. No wonder she’d handled the situation so well when she’d saved her from his overbearing fans, the day his bodyguard had been akumatised.

“Don’t worry about it, I’m sure he appreciated it.” The boy was an idiot if he didn’t see how ingenious Marinette was beyond what could be perceived as quirkiness. “To be honest, your pyjamas could easily pass for lounge wear if you don’t have a trained eye.”

“And since when do _you_ have one of those?” Marinette teased him as she raised an amused eyebrow. She sort of wanted to win their meaningless competition, but she was slightly relieved Chat thought her story wasn’t worth worrying about. 

“Since I work in the fashion industry?” He scoffed back, licking his ice cream spoon.

“Oh, right.” She kept on forgetting that little detail, although not enough to allow her to speak freely about Adrien, since she knew they were friends. She had trouble picturing Chat as a model. Especially since she looked unconsciously for his civilian persona in the fashion pages, and couldn’t see anybody that remotely fit his description, apart from Adrien. Though obviously there was no way they could be the same person.

“Well anyway, cute story but I accumulate _faux pas_ with Ladybug every time we fight together.”

Marinette pouted dubiously, trying to remember anything Chat had done that she would qualify as embarrassing. The only thing she could think of were his puns, although she had to say he was getting better at them. Of course, Ladybug would never say it out loud. “I think you’re overthinking.” 

“Off the top of my head: I keep on going against her orders, so I end up being used by villains. I’m sure most of the time she thinks I can’t pull my own weight.” He let out a small laugh, but his expression had darkened. 

Marinette noticed that under the lightness of the conversation, this was something that really seemed to trouble Chat. She pulled him to a stop, grabbing his arm to make him face her. “Kitty, I’m 100% sure she has never _once_ thought that. If anything, she worries about you when you sacrifice yourself for her, even though it does buy her time every once in a while.”

Chat relaxed a little, his eyes squinting fondly at his caring friend. He was grateful for her trying to make him feel better. “Thanks, Marinette.” He smiled. Cogs turned in his mind and he soon narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “But how do _you_ know this is how Ladybug feels?”

 _Crap_ , Marinette thought. “Oh, er…” She scrambled for a good excuse. “From the video footage! On Alya’s blog! You know her, she’s made me watch them a billion times, it’s enough to analyse anybody’s feelings from body language.” That should throw him off the scent.

“Makes sense.” He nodded. Marinette let out a small sigh of relief. “Ah, got another one; you didn’t kiss your crush twice and discovered it either on national TV or on a blog!” Chat cried out.

Marinette rolled her eyes. “That’s not embarrassing! It’s just a shame you don’t remember.” Her thoughts went to Chat’s lips. She had to admit he was a good kisser, even if he probably knew that already. She nearly choked on her ice cream as she wondered when she would get to kiss him again.

“Are you alright, Purr-incess?” Chat patted her on the back lightly, his eyes filled with concern.

“I’m fine!” She croaked, batting his hands away. She cleared her throat, ready to change the subject. It was Adrien she wanted to kiss, not Chat. “I think we can say we’re tied on this matter, then.”

“Let’s call it a truce for now.” Chat agreed, holding out a hand. She shook it, and they resumed their route. Although happy to be together, they both hoped the day when they’d be walking and joking around with the person of their dreams would come faster.


	23. Day 30 - Purr-ince

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette tries to show Chat Noir she could steal his job.

There’s nothing quite like friends you can hang out with in complete silence, lost in your thoughts. Those friends are even better if you can just blurt out the first thing that comes to your mind, and not have them question the randomness of it. In the heat of Summer, Marinette and Chat Noir had gotten used to such occasions. Alternating between her balcony and her room based on the temperature, they just lazed around, sometimes reading, sometimes just lying down and enjoying each other’s company. 

“If you could have any other Miraculous, what would it be?” Chat had been looking at the ceiling, following the few cracks in the paint to determine if there was a pattern, when he’d started wondering how he could go about reintegrating Marinette in the Miraculous team. They had an innate complicity, almost as good as his and Ladybug’s, that he was sure would be of great help in the event of a battle.

Marinette pondered the options. There were still many Miraculouses that hadn’t been used, so she couldn’t say for sure which one she’d pick. She knew her friend very well, though, and knew exactly where he was going with this conversation. “I actually think I’d like to give the Cat Miraculous a try. It looks like fun!” She replied with a mischievous smile, looking in his direction to catch his reaction. To be honest, it was a lot of fun being Ladynoire. Their fight against Reflekdoll was a particularly fond memory; it had been nice not being the one with most of the responsibilities, for once.

“You can’t just take my job like that!” Chat gasped, rolling over to face her.

“Hey, _you_ asked.” She shrugged, unable to erase the amusement from her face. Chat sighed and decided to play along.

“I don’t know, I just can’t picture you as… What, Marinoire?” He thought about what a good name would be. 

“A bit of an obvious name, don’t you think?” She laughed. “I’m curious though, what makes you say that?”

Chat reflected on his judgement. There was no doubt Marinette had a fun side to her, and she was definitely passionate, which he valued as important qualities for a Chat Noir, but she also seemed a little too cerebral. In that aspect, she reminded him a lot of Ladybug. “I don’t know, you’re just a bit too… Nice. I can’t really imagine you destroying things during a fight.”

“I am purr-fectly capable of using Cataclysm, thank you very much.” She scoffed. She stood up and grabbed Chat’s baton, which he had left on her desk. Chat decided to stand up as well to better track her movements.

Twirling the baton around like a cheer leading staff, she marched around the room. “Look at me, I’m Chat Noir, Paris’ superhero! I make paw-ful puns all the time and live for my Lady!” She performed. “Even my power is a pun, Cat-aclysm! Watch me destroy things fur the sake of Paris!”

She stopped in front of Chat, leaning on the baton. He looked unimpressed. “I don’t sound-”

“Have I mentioned I like to get up in people’s purr-sonal space?” Marinette leaned in, interrupting him mid-sentence. He gaped, his face only a few inches away from hers. His eyes darted to her pink lips. He’d had no idea flirty Marinette could be so attractive. “Well then, my Purr-ince,” she continued, standing on her tiptoes. Chat’s heart beat faster as the distance between them closed. He was frozen in place, waiting for her to kiss him, _hoping_ that she would. She dodged his lips at the last minute, going for his ear instead. “Cat got your tongue?” She whispered teasingly before moving away.

Chat remained stunned for a couple of seconds. _What had just happened?_ He pulled himself together, crossing his arms above his chest. “Okay, fine, you might be a worthy Chat Noir.” He admitted, his mind still on how close Marinette had been.

“Thanks.” She smiled proudly, tossing him his baton.

Under all the bravado, though, she herself was slightly shaken. _Since when is my first thought “kiss him” when I stand close to Chat?_


	24. Day 31 - Time travel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette and Chat Noir get a visit from their future selves.
> 
> (For comprehension purposes, the Future M and CN are referred by their name, and present are Mini Mari and Kitten Noir)

Chat Noir balanced on Marinette’s balcony railing, his arms spread out and a concentrated frown on his face. Marinette held his hand and tried not to chuckle at his tongue sticking out. So he was one of those people, then. She couldn’t believe her type was blepping-when-they’re-focused, green-eyed, blond boys. It just seemed very precise.

Her feelings for Adrien had gently faded away as she spent more time with Chat. She still liked him, of course, but she was happy having him as a just-a-friend, as she liked to call him. She’d had enough time to take a step back, and could now joke about his epithet for her. The thing she hadn’t had much time to do, though, was plan how she would confess to Chat. Unlike with Adrien, where her feelings had impeded their friendship by preventing her from communicating with him, her relationship with her Kitty was actually fine as it was. She just didn’t want to risk losing it.

Up on the railing, Chat was trying not to let the fact Marinette was holding his hand disturb him. He didn’t particularly want to test the theory that cats always landed on their feet. It had been a while since he’d discovered his feelings for her. It had hit him in the face at full speed; one second he’d been watching his good friend © talk with Alya and Nino, and the next he’d felt his heart try to escape his chest as she laughed about something. That was the sound he wanted to hear every day, for the rest of his life, he’d realised. 

Gripping her hand tighter, he cautiously moved his back foot, taking a step forward. Satisfied that it had gone well, he repeated the movement, Marinette accompanying him as he went. It was the least she could do; as soon as Chat had thought of the idea of playing funambulist on her balcony, there hadn’t been any talking him out of doing it -he really wanted to impress her. Just as he was about to let go, having established a nice little walking rhythm, a giant circle appeared near Marinette’s skylight, distracting him. He yelped, wobbling on the edge. Marinette yanked him back before he could fall, a lot stronger than any of them had anticipated. They rolled on the floor, Chat ending up pinned under her. They stared at each other, slowly registering their compromising position. They both turned crimson as they heard someone clear their throat behind them. 

Three pairs of eyes were trained on them, two of which were very amused, and also very familiar. 

“I’ll be back in five minutes, you better be done by then.” Bunnyx rolled her eyes as an older version of Marinette and Chat stepped out of her burrow. The entrance disappeared in a small flash.

“I told you we’d find them… _us_ here!” Older Marinette said, holding out a hand to help her younger self up. Chat… Kitten Noir got up on his own, still confused, and to be honest, slightly shook, about the succession of events. 

“I mean it’s not like you didn’t choose the most obvious place, Purr-incess.” Chat Noir elbowed her. “Hey mini us!”

“Hello?” Kitten Noir and Mini Mari asked tentatively, eyeing each other as they spoke at the same time. 

Mini Mari cleared her throat and stepped forward. “What are you guys doing here? Did something happen in the future?” 

“And where’s Ladybug?” Kitten’s eyes were darting from Marinette to Chat Noir, trying to figure out why the two of them were together. His eyes lit up as he came up with what he thought was the most plausible explanation. “Is she busy holding the fort? And if you guys are here, does that mean Multimouse plays an important role in the future?” He looked at Mini Mari in awe. “See, I told you Ladybug would end up seeing the light!”

Marinette chuckled, and exchanged a knowing look with Chat. “Sorry to disappoint you kids, but we can’t really answer any questions or Bunnyx will kill us. The only thing we can say is there’s no immediate threat, but we’re hear to warn you guys.”

“The Guardian isn’t eternal.” Chat continued. “And when he passes on his powers, you’ll need to make sure you have all the information you need to continue the fight against Hawkmoth, even if some of it ends up in the wrong hands.” 

Mini Mari and Kitten Noir looked at each other, hoping the other had understood the cryptic message. The way they shrugged indicated they were both in the dark about what was happening.

Marinette shook her head. “What Chat is trying to say is, tell the Guardian to back up everything he finds out, either numerically or the old school way, so his successor has access to the information. It’ll save you guys some time.”

Kitten Noir put his hand up out of habit before realising he could ask his question freely. He camouflaged the movement by scratching the back of his neck. “Does Ladybug know? Why come and see us,” he gestured between Mari and him, “when you could’ve met me and Ladybug on patrol?” 

Chat’s panicked glance went unnoticed as Marinette answered. “Oh, we already took care of Ladybug. There were a couple extra things we needed to tell her, without any other Miraculous holders around. You’re right when you say I’m quite key to operations in the future, though, which his why it was okay to meet you guys here.” She ruffled Kitten Noir’s hair. He let out a surprised purr in answer, his cheeks ablaze.

“I forgot how cute you were when you did that!” Marinette chuckled, turning towards Chat, who shook his head.

“Are you implying I’m not cute anymore?” 

Before she could reply, Bunnyx’s burrow reopened. Marinette quickly embraced Mini Mari in a hug, shoving a piece of paper against her chest. “Open it later.” She whispered in her ear before letting go. Mini Mari nodded.

Chat fist-bumped his younger self. “Stay cool, Kitten.”

“Wait!” Mini Mari called out before they could go through the entrance. They turned around expectantly. “Do we… I mean, us Miraculous holders, do we know who’s behind everyone’s mask?” 

Marinette pursed her lips and shrugged. “I’m afraid that’s up to you to find out!” She waved and walked back into her own reality, Chat hot on her heels. Mini Mari clutched the note, and Kitten Noir seemed completely lost.

“You know, in hindsight, it was _so_ obvious you liked me.” Marinette laughed, lightly punching Chat on the shoulder as they walked towards the Eiffel Tower. Although it had been the middle of the afternoon in the past, it was night time in the present.

“Excuse me, but it was so obvious _you_ liked _me_.” He answered, putting an arm around her shoulders and kissing her on the temple.

“Well, maybe seeing us together will give them ideas.” She leaned her head on his shoulder. “It’d be a shame for them to wait for _years_ before they get together.”

“Agreste.” He leaned his head on top of hers.

“Did you just use your own name as a pun?” 

“Purr-haps.” He smirked. 

“You’re such a dork.” She laughed, straightening up to kiss his cheek.

“But you love me.” Chat smiled at her, all his love for her pouring out of his gaze as he looked into her eyes.

“That, I do.” 

She kissed him in the moonlight, like she had many times before, and was likely to do many times in the future as well.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and kudos are always appreciated :)  
> Find me on Tumblr @2manyfandoms2count !


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